Waagacusub.com Wararka maanta

France:Hostages Held Off Somalia Freed.

PARIS (AP) — 11/April/2008 Waagacusub.com

By ANGELA CHARLTON

Pirates have freed 30 hostages held aboard a French tourist yacht off Somalia's coast for the past week following a peaceful operation that involved the French military, French officials said Friday.

The French government would not say whether any pirates were captured nor whether the vessel had been retaken.

But a Philippines government official, commenting because some of the freed crew were Filipino, said the yacht had been "turned over safe."

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, in a statement announcing the release, thanked the French army and other agencies "that allowed a quick end" to the hostage-taking.

Defense Minister Herve Morin said the operation "took place without incident."

Neither statement elaborated on when or how the hostages were freed, where they were or whether a ransom was paid.

France sent an elite commando force to the East African region after pirates seized the boat, Le Ponant, in the Gulf of Aden on April 4. It carried no passengers but 30 crew members, 22 of them French.

Abdi-salan Qoje, a fisherman working on the Somali shore near where the boat was being held, said he saw dozens of people being ferried Friday from the hijacked ship.

"As we went fishing at dawn we saw two empty boats heading to the hijacked ship in the distance," he told The Associated Press by telephone from the village of Eyl, about 300 miles north of Mogadishu.

"As the day wore on, the same boats passed us carrying at least 30 people. They waved at us."

The Foreign Ministry informed the Philippine Embassy in Paris that the hostages, including six Filipino crew members, were taken to a French military base in Djibouti and will be flown to Paris in "two to three days," Philippine Foreign Undersecretary Esteban Conejos said.

"They are in good physical condition. ...

All of them are safe and sound," he told the AP in Manila, adding that the yacht also "was turned over safe."

He said the Philippine government had no role in the release of the hostages.

French shipping company CMA-CGM, which owns the operator of the 288-foot Le Ponant, hailed the end of the standoff but released no details about the operation or the boat.

Le Ponant is a three-mast boat that can hold up to 64 passengers.

About 10 pirates stormed the yacht as it was returning from the Seychelles, in the Indian Ocean, toward the Mediterranean Sea. The pirates then guided it down Somalia's eastern coast.

France sent elite commando troops to the region earlier this week to bolster efforts to free the captives. A French frigate was diverted from its NATO duties and tracked the yacht, while a French plane dispatched from a French base in Djibouti flew over the boat, military officials said.

An official in Somalia's semiautonomous Puntland region, near where the yacht was held, warned the French government earlier this week against paying a ransom, saying it would encourage pirates to continue taking hostages.

Pirates seized more than two dozen ships off Somalia's coast last year. The U.S. Navy has led international patrols to try to combat piracy in the region, but an increase in naval patrols has coincided with a rash of kidnappings of foreigners on land.

Somalia has been wracked by more than a decade of violence and anarchy and does not have its own navy.

A transitional government formed in 2004 with U.N. help has struggled to assert control.

Associated Press writers Mohamed Olad Hassan in Mogadishu, Somalia, and Oliver Teves in Manila, Philippines, contributed to this report.

ASOJ REGISTERED VIOLATIONS ON JOURNALISTS IN SOMALIA FROM 2000 TO 2007
WaagacusubOnline@yahoo.com
+254-733444433 CELTEL
+2521-5565600 Hormuud Telecom
ASOJ MEMBERS MET IN NAIROBI that meeting
was discused the objective of the asoj and was
nominated new

Saxaafadu malahan Saaxiib Joogtaa Waagacusub Online 2008
A memorial service for three Somali Journalists held in Nairobi


		Daawo sawirada Weriyaasha Associated Somali Journalists ASOJ
		France:Hostages Held Off Somalia Freed. PARIS (AP) — 11/April/2008 Waagacusub.com By ANGELA CHARLTON Pirates have freed 30 hostages held aboard a French tourist yacht off Somalia's coast for the past week following a peaceful operation that involved the French military, French officials said Friday. The French government would not say whether any pirates were captured nor whether the vessel had been retaken. But a Philippines government official, commenting because some of the freed crew were Filipino, said the yacht had been "turned over safe." French President Nicolas Sarkozy, in a statement announcing the release, thanked the French army and other agencies "that allowed a quick end" to the hostage-taking. Defense Minister Herve Morin said the operation "took place without incident." Neither statement elaborated on when or how the hostages were freed, where they were or whether a ransom was paid. France sent an elite commando force to the East African region after pirates seized the boat, Le Ponant, in the Gulf of Aden on April 4. It carried no passengers but 30 crew members, 22 of them French. Abdi-salan Qoje, a fisherman working on the Somali shore near where the boat was being held, said he saw dozens of people being ferried Friday from the hijacked ship. "As we went fishing at dawn we saw two empty boats heading to the hijacked ship in the distance," he told The Associated Press by telephone from the village of Eyl, about 300 miles north of Mogadishu. "As the day wore on, the same boats passed us carrying at least 30 people. They waved at us." The Foreign Ministry informed the Philippine Embassy in Paris that the hostages, including six Filipino crew members, were taken to a French military base in Djibouti and will be flown to Paris in "two to three days," Philippine Foreign Undersecretary Esteban Conejos said. "They are in good physical condition. ... All of them are safe and sound," he told the AP in Manila, adding that the yacht also "was turned over safe." He said the Philippine government had no role in the release of the hostages. French shipping company CMA-CGM, which owns the operator of the 288-foot Le Ponant, hailed the end of the standoff but released no details about the operation or the boat. Le Ponant is a three-mast boat that can hold up to 64 passengers. About 10 pirates stormed the yacht as it was returning from the Seychelles, in the Indian Ocean, toward the Mediterranean Sea. The pirates then guided it down Somalia's eastern coast. France sent elite commando troops to the region earlier this week to bolster efforts to free the captives. A French frigate was diverted from its NATO duties and tracked the yacht, while a French plane dispatched from a French base in Djibouti flew over the boat, military officials said. An official in Somalia's semiautonomous Puntland region, near where the yacht was held, warned the French government earlier this week against paying a ransom, saying it would encourage pirates to continue taking hostages. Pirates seized more than two dozen ships off Somalia's coast last year. The U.S. Navy has led international patrols to try to combat piracy in the region, but an increase in naval patrols has coincided with a rash of kidnappings of foreigners on land. Somalia has been wracked by more than a decade of violence and anarchy and does not have its own navy. A transitional government formed in 2004 with U.N. help has struggled to assert control. Associated Press writers Mohamed Olad Hassan in Mogadishu, Somalia, and Oliver Teves in Manila, Philippines, contributed to this report. ASOJ REGISTERED VIOLATIONS ON JOURNALISTS IN SOMALIA FROM 2000 TO 2007 WaagacusubOnline@yahoo.com +254-733444433 CELTEL +2521-5565600 Hormuud Telecom ASOJ MEMBERS MET IN NAIROBI that meeting was discused the objective of the asoj and was nominated new