German-French family seized from yacht off Somalia (Roundup)

Jun 24, 2008, 14:01 GMT

Mogadishu - Four European citizens - including a German man, his French partner and their young son - have been seized from a yacht off Somalia's pirate-infested coast, an official said Tuesday.

The district commissioner of the Las Korey area Yusuf Jama Dabeed said the four - the French pilot of the yacht plus the family - were abducted early Monday as they sailed through the Gulf of Aden.

The kidnappers then abandoned the yacht on the shore and disappeared into a nearby mountainous area with their hostages.

German authorities were unavailable for comment.

Piracy is rife off the coast of the Horn of Africa nation.

Cargo ships and luxury yachts have been targeted by heavily-armed pirates, who then hold the crew ransom.

The most high-profile case in recent months involved the capture of a luxury French yacht in April. French troops rescued the hostages and captured six of the pirates, although another six are believed to have escaped.

The UN Security Council recently approved incursions into Somali waters to curb piracy, which the weak transitional government, currently engaged in countering a bloody insurgency, is powerless to prevent.

Somalia has been in a state of anarchy since the overthrow of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.