Somali Pirates Seize Cargo Ship With 24 Aboard

Published October 30, 2010

| Associated Press

NAIROBI, Kenya-- The European Union's anti-piracy naval force says Somali pirates have seized a cargo vessel with 24 crew members aboard.

The owners of MV Polar confirmed early Saturday that pirates control the ship, the EU force said in a statement.

Pirates seized the Liberian-owned ship some 684 miles east of the Indian Ocean island of Socotra. It belongs to Yemen but is close to the tip of northeastern Somalia.

The ship has 24 crew members: one Romanian, three Greek nationals, four Montenegrins and 16 Filipinos.

Somali pirates usually seize ships using the Gulf of Aden, one of the world's busiest waterways.

They earn multimillion dollar ransoms with little risk because Somalia has not had an effective government for 19 years.

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Morocco Says 2 Terror Cells Dismantled

Published October 30, 2010

| Associated Press

RABAT, Morocco-- The Moroccan Interior Ministry says two terrorist cells with links to Al Qaeda have been dismantled and their members detained.

In a statement Saturday, the ministry said the cells were made up of nine people, including a Yemeni national who's sought by that country and two people who'd already been convicted on terror charges.

One of the cells, called the "Front of the Saharawi Jihad," supported independence for the disputed Western Sahara territory and was plotting terrorist acts, the statement said.

The other was aimed at recruiting extremists to send to Iraq and was apparently in contact with groups in Al Qaeda's network, the statement said.

It did not give other details.

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