*Sources: Int'l Media / AFP
(NSI News Source Info) MOMBASA, Kenya – June 11, 2009: The US Navy on Wednesday handed over 17 suspected Somali pirates to Kenya, taking the total number held in the east African nation to 101, police said. 
Some of the seventeen suspected Somali pirates outside the Port police station in Mombasa, Kenya, after they had been disembarked from an American naval warship the MV Frigate Gettysburg Wednesday June 10, 2009, following their apprehension by American naval officers in the dangerous waters off Yemen. The suspected Somali pirates were arrested on May 13, 2009 as they attempted to hijack a merchant cargo ship which was headed to Alexandria port in Egypt. The pirates were armed with six AK47s, one pistol, one Somali sword and one rocket propelled grenade (RPG) launcher at the time of arrest. They will be charged in a court in Malindi town, 120km north of Mombasa.
The suspects were detained in the Gulf of Aden in a joint operation by US and South Korean navies on May 13 as they tried to attack an Egyptian vessel, the MV Amira.
"The suspects resisted arrest but the US marines managed to overpower them," said Sebson Wandera, a Coastal province criminal investigation officer.
Wandera said the latest group brought the total number of suspected and convicted Somali pirates on Kenyan soil to 101.
Over the past year, Nairobi has signed deals with several major naval powers to allow the transfer of suspected Somali pirates to Kenyan courts. 
The American naval warship Frigate MV Gettysburg as it docks at the Kilindini port of Mombasa, Wednesday June 10, 2009 with seventeen suspected Somali pirates on board who were arrested by the American naval officers. The suspected Somali pirates were arrested on May 13, 2009 as they attempted to hijack a merchant cargo ship which was headed to Alexandria port in Egypt. The pirates were armed with six AK47s, one pistol, one Somali sword and one rocket propelled grenade (RPG) launcher at the time of arrest. They will be charged in a court in Malindi town, 120km north of Mombasa.
Ten out of the 101 pirates have already been convicted and sentenced to a seven year jail each.
With holding cells running out of space in the port city of Mombasa, the new arrivals will be transferred to Malindi, a coastal town north 130 kilometres (80 miles) north of Mombasa.
Up to 20 foreign warships patrol the pirate-infested waters off the Somali coast to safeguard major shipping lanes at any given time.
Pirates currently hold at least 14 ships in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, along with more than 200 seamen.
Some of the seventeen suspected Somali pirates outside the Port police station in Mombasa, Kenya, after they had been disembarked from an American naval warship the MV Frigate Gettysburg Wednesday June 10, 2009, following their apprehension by American naval officers in the dangerous waters off Yemen. The suspected Somali pirates were arrested on May 13, 2009 as they attempted to hijack a merchant cargo ship which was headed to Alexandria port in Egypt. The pirates were armed with six AK47s, one pistol, one Somali sword and one rocket propelled grenade (RPG) launcher at the time of arrest. They will be charged in a court in Malindi town, 120km north of Mombasa.
The suspects were detained in the Gulf of Aden in a joint operation by US and South Korean navies on May 13 as they tried to attack an Egyptian vessel, the MV Amira.
"The suspects resisted arrest but the US marines managed to overpower them," said Sebson Wandera, a Coastal province criminal investigation officer.
Wandera said the latest group brought the total number of suspected and convicted Somali pirates on Kenyan soil to 101.
Over the past year, Nairobi has signed deals with several major naval powers to allow the transfer of suspected Somali pirates to Kenyan courts. The American naval warship Frigate MV Gettysburg as it docks at the Kilindini port of Mombasa, Wednesday June 10, 2009 with seventeen suspected Somali pirates on board who were arrested by the American naval officers. The suspected Somali pirates were arrested on May 13, 2009 as they attempted to hijack a merchant cargo ship which was headed to Alexandria port in Egypt. The pirates were armed with six AK47s, one pistol, one Somali sword and one rocket propelled grenade (RPG) launcher at the time of arrest. They will be charged in a court in Malindi town, 120km north of Mombasa.
Ten out of the 101 pirates have already been convicted and sentenced to a seven year jail each.
With holding cells running out of space in the port city of Mombasa, the new arrivals will be transferred to Malindi, a coastal town north 130 kilometres (80 miles) north of Mombasa.
Up to 20 foreign warships patrol the pirate-infested waters off the Somali coast to safeguard major shipping lanes at any given time.
Pirates currently hold at least 14 ships in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, along with more than 200 seamen.
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