Occupied Jerusalem: An Israeli official says pirates attacked an Israeli-owned ship near the Gulf of Aden, where international shipping lanes have been plagued by Somali maritime marauders.

The director of the Israeli shipping company Zim says pirates fired shots and attempted to take over one of the company's vessels on Saturday.

Rafi Danieli says the pirates failed to board because of barbed wire the company had installed around the deck.
Danieli told Israel Radio on Sunday that the company alerted the Israeli Foreign Ministry and Nato, which dispatched a British aircraft that drove the pirates off.

Danieli said this was the first pirate attack against an Israeli vessel. Israel Radio identified the ship as the Africa Star.