US warships track hostage-holding pirates

MOGADISHU, Sunday

US warships tracked a boatload of gunmen holding a US ship's captain hostage off the Somali coast on Sunday and unidentified military helicopters flew over the pirate lair of Haradheere.

The gunmen were in a lifeboat out of fuel and drifting towards land, U.S. military officials said. If it reached shore, they might try to escape with their hostage, the officials said.

The US-flagged Maersk Alabama container ship was attacked far out in the Indian Ocean on Wednesday but its 20 American crew apparently fought off the pirates and regained control.

Relatives said merchant marine Captain Richard Phillips, 53, volunteered to go with the pirates in a Maersk Alabama lifeboat in exchange for the safety of his ship and its crew.

The four Somali pirates holding him want $2 million ransom and a guarantee of safe passage.

The incident has sharpened international attention on the growing problem of piracy in the busy sea lanes of the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean.

Phillips is just one of about 270 hostages from around the world being held by pirates, who have targetted vessels from oil tankers to luxury yachts.

Three U.S. warships including the destroyer USS Bainbridge were in the area around the lifeboat on Sunday.

Military officials said the pirates fired on a U.S. craft that approached them from the Bainbridge on Saturday. No one was hurt and the craft withdrew.

Helicopters also flew over a coastal area used by pirates as a base on Sunday.

Residents said they could see white soldiers on one of two helicopters which flew over for around half an hour in the area of Haradheere port on Somalia's Indian Ocean coast.

They said they believed the helicopters came from nearby U.S. or other foreign warships. One helicopter briefly landed.

Resident Ahmed Haji Abdi said people were afraid of being bombed.

"We thought there would be air raids this morning. Haradheere is full of pirates," he said. "They might be Americans. They have left now."