Spain hands over 13 Somali pirates to Kenya



MOMBASA, Kenya, May 16 (Xinhua) -- Spain on Saturday handed over 13 suspected Somali pirates to Kenyan authorities for prosecution as the war against piracy took a new twist with pirates now targeting European Union naval ships deployed in the Indian Ocean off Somali coast.
The suspects who attacked the Marques De La Ensenada were turned over as part of an agreement between the European Union and Kenya to have captured pirates tried in Kenyan courts.
Speaking to journalists during the handover at the coastal city of Mombasa, Coast Criminal Investigation Department Officer Nyagah Reche said when the suspects attacked the naval ship they knew it was a military vessel.
"They did not mistake the vessel for a commercial ship. They attacked it with rocket launchers and shot at it, shattering one of the window panes," Reche told journalists in Mombasa.
"On May 7, seven pirates attacked the ship and were arrested while the following day six also attacked the same ship and captured," he added.
This was the first time pirates targeted naval ships deployed in the Indian Ocean after three of them were killed by U. S. navy snipers last month to free U.S. captain Richard Philips whom they had been holding for five days.
Two AK 47 rifles, two pistols, several rounds of ammunition, two boats and a rocket launcher were confiscated and would be produced in court as evidence, Reche said.
The arrival of the 11 brings to 77 the number of suspects under trial in Mombasa while 10 whose appeal was struck off by a Mombasa court this week are serving a seven-year jail term.
A Spanish judge ruled Friday the pirates should be released. The judge had previously said proceedings were already taking place in Spain and that it would violate the law to turn them over to Kenya.
But after an inquiry from the Defense Ministry, the judge said his ruling did not prevent the pirates from being released in Kenya.
France is prosecuting 15 piracy suspects in its own courts, though it has transferred others to Kenya, including 11 who were handed over last week.
The European Union and several other foreign navies have established patrols to protect merchant ships in the region.
Despite the patrols, Somali pirates have continued to hijack commercial vessels for ransom.
Editor: Wang Guanqun
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-05/16/content_11385853.htm