PARIS -- The French armed forces spokesman says that one of its military vessels was fired at by Somali pirates who apparently mistook it for a commercial boat. The vessel gave chase and captured 5 suspected pirates.
Rear Admiral Christophe Prazuck says that pirates in skiffs fired their Kalashnikov rifles at La Somme, a military refueling ship, early Wednesday. No one was injured. The vessel gave chase, capturing and holding five suspected pirates in one of the skiffs.
France is a key member the European Union's naval mission, codenamed Operation Atalanta, fighting Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden.
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