British, Russians battle pirates

<p>MOGADISHU, Somalia -- Russian and British forces teamed up with boats and helicopters to rescue a cargo ship from an attempted hijacking in the Gulf of Aden, then chased down the attackers and killed two of them in a gunbattle, military officials said Wednesday.</p><p>Russian navy spokesman Capt. Igor Dygalo said the Russian missile frigate Neustrashimy and the British frigate HMS Cumberland each sent up a helicopter against the pirates as they tried to commandeer a Danish vessel on Tuesday. It was the first action by a Russian warship sent to prevent hijackings off Somalia.</p><p>"The pirates tried to hit the ship with automatic weapons fire and made several attempts to seize it," Russian navy spokesman Capt. Igor Dygalo said on state-run Vesti-24 television.</p><p>The British military said the Cumberland then sent boats to circle a Yemeni-flagged dhow -- a traditional wooden vessel -- that apparently had been involved in the attack on the Danish-registered MV Powerful.</p><p>The crew of the dhow opened fire at the boats but surrendered after the British crews returned fire in self defense, the military said. A British crew boarded the dhow and found two suspected pirates, believed to be Somalis, had been shot and killed, it said.</p><p>A Yemeni man also was found wounded and later died despite emergency treatment, according to the British military. It said it was unclear whether his injuries were as a result of the firefight or a previous incident involving the pirates.</p><p>Russia sent the Neustrashimy, or Intrepid, to protect Russian ships and crew off Somalia's coast after a Ukrainian freighter with three Russians aboard -- and loaded with battle tanks -- was hijacked in September. Its captain has died, and the 20 other crew are still being held on the MV Faina.</p><p>Attacks have continued virtually unabated off Somalia, which has had no functioning government since 1991.</p><p>Turkish maritime officials said pirates had commandeered the Karagol, a Turkish tanker bound for India, on Wednesday, 16 miles off the coast of Yemen. It was carrying 4,500 tons of chemicals and 14 Turkish personnel. The total number of naval attacks off Somalia stood at 83 before the Karagol was seized, with 33 ships hijacked and 12 still in pirates' hands, most notably the Ukrainian freighter.</p><p>Britain on Wednesday proposed new sanctions against Somalia aimed at stopping its burgeoning pirate trade and lawlessness that threaten a weak U.N.-backed government. Under the proposal submitted to the U.N. Security Council, nations would freeze the financial assets of some people and entities, but not money intended for "basic expenses," such as food and medicine.</p><p>The council plans to consider the new sanctions next week. Last month, it called on all countries with a stake in maritime safety off Somalia to send naval ships and military aircraft to confront growing piracy there.</p><p>About 20,000 ships sail through the Gulf of Aden each year, compared to 13,000 that pass through the Panama Canal and 50,000 that traverse the Straits of Malacca -- formerly the most pirate-infested waterway in the world.</p><p>The Indian navy said Tuesday its marine commandos operating from a warship prevented pirates from hijacking an Indian merchant vessel in the Gulf of Aden.</p>