Were the 'pirates' that attacked the crusie ship '100 miles off the Somali coast', al-Qaeda terrorists trying to capture U.S. hostages?
Gunmen in two speedboats – captured on a tourist's video camera – fired on the 100,000-tonne Seabourn Spirit, blasting its hull with rocket-propelled grenades. One grenade bounced off. Another ricocheted into a couple's cabin but failed to explode. The crew tried to ram the pirates before fending them off with high-powered hoses and using a sonic blaster to incapacitate them. The ship then powered out to sea and safety as the attackers escaped. None of the 300 passengers – who had paid as much as $20,000 for the 16-day trip – was injured, although one crewman was cut by shrapnel.
