Somali pirates killed four Americans aboard a yacht the pirates hijacked off the coast of Somalia, U.S. military officials reported of an incident that started Friday and ended in gunfire today with the death of several pirates, too. It marked the first time that U.S. citizens had died in the wave of piracies in the region during the past several years.
A U.S. Navy warship had been shadowing the Quest since pirates hijacked it Friday.
CBS News national security correspondent David Martin reported this morning that gunshots aboard the yacht were heard, and the warship took action.
U.S. naval forces quickly boarded the captured yacht after hearing the gunfire and tried to provide lifesaving care to the Americans but they died of their wounds, the U.S. Central Command said.
Two pirates died during the confrontation, and 13 were captured and detained, the U.S. Central Command said from Tampa, Fla. The remains of two other pirates who were already dead for some time were also found. The U.S. military didn't state how those two might have died.
Negotiations had been under way to try to win the release of the two couples on the pirated vessel Quest when the gunfire was heard, the U.S. military said.
The Quest was the home of Jean and Scott Adam, a couple from California who had been sailing around the world since December 2004. The two other Americans on board were Phyllis Macay and Bob Riggle of Seattle, Wash.
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