The Hong Kong flagged merchant ship M/V Overseas Hercules uses fire hoses as a countermeasure against a possible pirate attack in the Gulf of Aden December 2, 2008. According to NATO headquarters in Naples, the Italian naval destroyer ITS Luigi Durand de la Penne arrived following a distress call and instructed the vessel to use its fire hoses to thwart an attack. No attack was made on the ship. (Photo Source: China Daily/Agencies) Photo Gallery>>>

Analysis: What causes rampant Somali piracies? 

    BEIJING, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- Anarchy in Somalia, lack of a coordinated international strategy to fight the kidnapping epidemic and a vicious ransom-weaponry cycle have resulted in rampant piracies in the waters off Somali, analysts say.

    Eyes across the world recently have been staring at the Gulf of Aden, an area almost twice the size of Alaska flanked by Yemen and Somalia, where Somali pirates are making newspaper headlines by capturing several vessels within a few days including the largest oil tanker Sirius Star ever kidnapped. Full story

Time to get down to business with pirate scourge off Somalia

    BEIJING, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- With their Nov. 15 capture of the Sirius Star, one of the world's largest oil tankers carrying 2 million barrels of Saudi oil, the biggest vessel ever hijacked at sea, Somali pirates leaped into the global spotlight, setting alarm bells ringing on the seriousness of the threat they pose.  Full story

Somali pirates wreak havoc along key shipping route

    BEIJING, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Attacks by pirates off the coast of Somalia have fiercely intensified, with five vessels reportedly hijacked in the past week, including Saudi-owned supertanker Sirius Star, the largest vessel ever seized at sea.

    On Wednesday, a Hong Kong-flagged cargo ship was confirmed to have been hijacked in the Gulf of Aden near the coast of Yemen. Full story

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