Nairobi, Kenya:
Somali pirates may be holding several dhows carrying an estimated 100 Indian sailors they have seized over the past five days, an Indian naval spokesman and a diplomat said Tuesday. However, they have not demanded ransom yet.
Indian navy spokesman PVS Satish said the navy was checking reports that eight dhows with Indians aboard have been missing since Sunday.
A Nairobi-based diplomat said the dhows were seized between Friday and Sunday, but could not say how many vessels were taken. The boats are believed to have been moving goods between Somalia and the United Arab Emirates, said the diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
He said some of dhows have drifted away from the Somali coastline but their location is not clear.
Pirate attacks have continued to climb despite three dozen warships patrolling the Somali coast.
Experts say piracy will continue to be a problem until an effective government is established on Somalia's lawless shores. There are few other job prospects in the impoverished nation, which has not had a stable government for 19 years.