Pirates seize Italians on tug as US ships converge

Brussels: Nato says Italian officials are trying to negotiate the release of 10 citizens on a tug seized off north Somalia with 16 crew.

Shona Lowe, a spokeswoman at Nato's Northwood maritime command center, confirmed that the tugboat was hijacked on Saturday morning in the Gulf of Aden off Somalia's northern coast when it was towing barges.

She confirmed 10 of the 16 crew were Italian nationals, adding that Italian government officials and the company that owned the vessel were involved in trying to secure their release.

The hijacking took place as the American captain of the US-flagged Maersk Alabama was still being held hostage on a lifeboat being watched by two US warships.