Ethiopian Review

MOMBASA — Kenyan prosecutors on Monday charged eleven Somalis, who were handed over by French Navy last week, with piracy.

The Somalis who were captured by French Navy on May 3 were charged before Mombasa Chief Magistrate Catherine Mwangi with piracy. Speaking through an interpreter, they denied the charges.

The suspects had approached the French frigate MV Nivose which is deployed by the European Union to guard and escort commercial ships in the pirates-infested waters off Somali coast, preparing for an attack but were shocked to discover it was a warship.

As they prepared for a retreat, a helicopter was dispatched and solders on speedboats quickly surrounded and apprehended them.

The Somalis who were not represented were accused of possessing two AK47 rifles and other weapons.

State Counsel Alexander Muteti opposed the suspects being released on bond. “The suspects are not Kenyans and cannot be bonded at this early stage. I oppose them to be released on bond,” Muteti told the magistrate. “Cases of piracy have become a global concern and this case needs to be given the seriousness it deserves.”

Since November 2008, at least 64 suspected Somali pirates have been charged in Kenya after being handed over by European and U.S. naval forces in line with an agreement.

Ten others serving seven-year sentence at the Shimo La Tewa prison have appealed against the sentence.

Pirates have continued attacking and hijacking ships within the Somali waters in the Indian Ocean despite the presence of international navies at the Gulf of Aden, resulting to increased freight insurance and some shipping lines avoiding the Red Sea route for the more expensive Cape of Good Hope in South Africa.

Somali pirates have made away with millions of dollars in ransom payment and continued to demand more money in return for dozens of ships and overt 200 hostages they are still holding.

- Xinhua