EU NAVFOR said a US warship had seen at least one person with a rocket-propelled grenade launcher on board the MV QSM Dubai after it was raided in the Gulf of Aden. It said the crew were from Egypt, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Ghana.
The 15,220 deadweight ton vessel was seized inside the internationally recommended transit corridor and had come from Brazil. It was not immediately clear what cargo the MV QSM Dubai was carrying.
Somali pirates have continued their hijackings, making tens of millions of dollars in ransoms, despite an international flotilla of warships patrolling the waters off the lawless Horn of Africa nation that link Europe with Africa and Asia.
Typically the pirates anchor the vessels off their land-based havens until a ransom is paid, at which point the vessel along with its crew and cargo is released.
The anti-piracy taskforce said one crew member of the Libyan-owned MV RIM, captured four months ago, was seriously wounded during a move to overpower pirates on board the vessel.
"It is believed that some of the pirates were killed during the incident. The ship is now under the control of the crew," EU NAVFOR said in an online statement.
The 4,800 ton MV RIM was seized on Feb. 2 this year.
Andrew Mwangura, who heads the East Africa Seafarers' Assistance Program, said nine pirates had been killed.
A battleship from the EU fleet was headed for the MV RIM to offer medical assistance.
