NATO ship seizes explosives from suspected pirates

I / Nairobi May 2, 2009, 15:16 IST

A Portuguese warship seized explosives from suspected Somali pirates after thwarting an attack on a Norwegian oil tanker, a NATO spokesman said today.     

It was the first time NATO forces found pirates armed with raw explosives, Lt-Cmdr Alexandre Santos Fernandes said from the Portuguese frigate the Corte-Real.     

The four sticks of P4A dynamite which could be used for demolition and blasting through walls were destroyed along with four automatic rifles and nine rocket-propelled grenades also confiscated. It was unclear how the pirates planned to use the dynamite, Fernandes said.     

The Corte-Real had sent a helicopter to investigate a distress call from the Norwegian-owned MV Kition yesterday about 100 miles (161 kilometers) north from the Somali coast in the Gulf of Aden.     

The suspects fled to a larger pirate vessel, but were intercepted by the warship an hour later."The skiff had returned to the mothership," Fernandes said. " Portuguese special forces performed the boarding with no exchange of fire."     

The 19 pirate suspects were released, however, after consultation with Portuguese authorities because they had not attacked Portuguese property or citizens.