A Danish frigate disarms a group of would-be pirates

(BRUSSELS2) The Esbern Snare apprehended, on Friday, a suspicious group which in a skiff was preparing for an attack. The "pirates" had been spotted by a Japanese maritime patrol aircraft in the Recommended International Transit Corridor (IRTC) in the Gulf of Aden. The Danish frigate which participates in the NATO operation - Ocean Shield - in the Gulf of Aden was closest to the incident and intervened. The Esbern Snare's helicopter hovered over the suspect boat and fired warning shots ahead of the skiff to force the suspects to a halt. It took a shot on goal, on the skiff itself, for them to agree to stop.

By the time the control teams arrived on board their RHIBs, the crew of the helicopter was able to observe strange maneuvers, the suspects offloading certain objects that very, very closely resemble weapons... ( we recognize in particular in the red frame what is, in fact, an RPG). 7 suspects were then apprehended and the rest of the piracy gear was seized.

For Captain Carsten Fjord-Larsen, the commanding officer of the Esbern Snare: the pirates did not seem to realize the danger of not complying with our orders. » What is not specified is that the pirates will not be prosecuted and have been released (for lack of flagrante delicto, host country in the Gulf and agreement with host countries).

(Nicolas Gros-Verheyde)