NAIROBI, Sept. 30 (Xinhua) -- Three Somali pirates have died in a shootout following the differences over what to do with the seized Ukrainian ship with crew members, arms and tanks aboard, a regional maritime official confirmed on Tuesday.

    Andrew Mwangura of the East Africa's Seafarers Assistance Program said the three died on Monday night as they were guarding the MV Faina over the misunderstanding on whether to release the arms cargo that included 33 T-72 tanks and 20 crew members.

    "A misunderstanding erupted between the moderate and radical pirates aboard the ship prompting a shootout that left three of them dead," Mwangura told Xinhua by telephone.

    "The moderates want to give in but the radicals don't want this to happen. The U.S. naval ships are very close and there is panic among the pirates," said Mwangura.

    The incident came as warships surrounded the MV Faina which was seized on Thursday, with its 21 Ukrainian, Russian and Lithuanian crew members and arms cargo.

    "For the safety of the crew members, we urge the United States and Russian naval ships to pull back and stay away from the ship," Mwangura said.

    The MV Faina is owned and operated by Kaalbye Shipping Ukraine, and its crew include citizens of Ukraine, Russia and Latvia.

    U.S. officials said the ship was reported being surrounded by three small boats of pirates while sailing 250 miles (400 km) off the coast of Somalia.

    The latest hijackings are part of a surge of daring maritime attacks off the coast of Somalia, a war-torn country that has been without a functioning government since 1991.

    The authorities in Somalia said they were powerless to confront the pirates, who regularly hold ships for ransom at the port of Eyl.

    There were reports that at least 100 pirates from the dreaded Somalia Youth Coast Guard were in control of the MV Faina, which is sailing under a Belize flag.

    Pirates have seized dozens of ships near Somalia's coast in recent months.