U.S. Navy, Suspected Pirates Clash

By Somalilandtimes network

This file photo shows the USS Cape St. George, a guided missile cruiser with a crew of about 400.

(CNN) -- Two U.S. Navy ships skirmished with a group of suspected pirates off the coast of Somalia Saturday, killing one and wounding five, the Navy said.

No U.S. soldiers were injured.

At the time, the USS Cape St. George, a guided missile cruiser, and the USS Gonzalez, a guided missile destroyer, were conducting maritime security operations in the Indian Ocean, the Navy said.

Pirate attacks and hijackings are common off the eastern African nation's coast and usually target U.N. World Food Program vessels carrying relief food for the millions of people affected by the drought.

Last week, Somali pirates kidnapped 50 Yemeni fishermen off a Yemeni island just east of Somalia, according to Yemen's state news agency Saba.

On November 5, pirates fired rocket-propelled grenades at a 440-foot luxury cruise liner operated by Seabourn Cruise Line. No one was hurt, and the captain was able to get away before the pirates could board the ship.

CNN Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr contributed to this report

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