Two Alakrana pirates arrested by the frigate Canarias (maj2)

(BRUSSELS2) It didn't take long... The Spanish frigate Canarias " captured this morning two pirates, who would be among the 13 pirates who participated in the capture of the Spanish Basque tuna, Alakrana “, announced, Sunday, the head of “operations” of the Spanish General Staff, General Jaime Dominguez Buj, according to information reported by theEFE agency. The Canarias frigate - which fait part of the EU anti-piracy operation "Atalanta" - arrived in the area overnight from Saturday to Sunday. She benefited from information from maritime patrol aircraft which reported that two men aboard a skiff were returning to the Somali coast. Madrid then authorized the interception. The Canarias helicopter then intervened, immobilizing the skiff, with warning shots. During the apprehension, one of the suspects was slightly injured in the abdomen during the assault. He was taken care of by the Canarias' on-board doctor. The Alakrana would have been anchored off the Somali coast since this morning. It is followed at a distance by the French frigate "Germinal" which is also part of Atalanta.

The judge of the Audienca nacional, Balthazar Garzon, opened, on Sunday, legal proceedings for the crime of kidnapping and acts of terrorism in the context of an act of piracy. This could allow the suspects to be repatriated to Spain for trial (if the government authorizes it). The judge is kept informed of the various developments in the case.

Atalanta HQ, in turn, confirmed the arrest on Sunday evening: "Late in the evening of 3 October, two of the suspected pirates who gained control of the Spanish tuna fishing vessel ALAKRANA the day before, were arrested by the EU NAVFOR Spanish warship CANARIAS. The suspected pirates had left the ALAKRANA with a small boat that was detected and stopped by the EU NAVFOR warship. During the arrest, one of the pirates was lightly injured, but he was given immediate medical treatment by the doctor onboard EU NAVFOR CANARIAS and his condition is stable. Both suspected pirates are now on board CANARIAS. The hijacked Spanish fishing vessel ALAKRANA has anchored off the coast of Somalia."