20/11/2017 (Agence Europe) – The Italian Virginio Fasan ship, the flagship vessel of the EU NAVFOR Somalia (Atalanta) operation, has apprehended six suspected pirates and seized their vessels. An EU NAVFOR source explained, “Six crew of a motor whaler, acting as mother ship, and a skiff have been detained following attacks on a 52,000-tonne container ship and a fishing vessel” on 17th and 18th November in the Southern Somali Basin. The same source added, “A legal process has now begun for the suspected pirates to be transferred to the appropriate authority for prosecution”. The EU NAVFOR operation helps deterrence, prevention and the repression of acts of piracy and armed robbery off the Somalian coast. (CG)