Somali pirates seize yacht in Gulf of Aden

Nairobi: A yacht has been hijacked by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden, the third ship to be taken within 24 hours off Somali waters despite the presence of international navies.

"I know that a yacht was taken on Tuesday night. There were two people on board but we have no other information on that case," said Andrew Mwangura of the Kenyan-based East African Seafarers Assistance programme.

Earlier an Indonesian tugboat used by French oil company Total was seized off the coast of Yemen along with a Turkish cargo ship on Tuesday, Mwangura said.

Several ships have been hijacked by Somali pirates this year, including Saudi supertanker Sirius Star.