US sends drones to monitor east African pirates
News4u-News Desk-Nairobi, (AP) US military surveillance drones are patrolling off Somalia’s coast for the first time in hopes of stemming a rising piracy trade.
Pirates have unleashed a wave of attacks in recent days as the new pirate season begins. Monsoons kept pirates off the water in recent months.
The bandits seized three ships in the last 10 days, and officials say attacks will rise.
US military officials say unmanned drones called Reapers, stationed in the island nation of Seychelles, are patrolling the Indian Ocean.
Vice Adm Robert Moeller, deputy commander for US Africa Command in Germany, says pirates remain “a pretty significant challenge.”
Somalia has been ravaged by violence and anarchy since 1991 and piracy has flourished off its coast.
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