U.S. warships open fire on suspected pirates

Two U.S. warships opened fire on suspected pirates in a small boat in the Indian Ocean off Somalia on Saturday when the pirates brandished shoulder-fired rocket launchers at the two ships as they approached, the Navy said.

One of the pirates was killed, and five were wounded, the Navy said. Twelve suspects were taken into custody. Sailors worked into the night to quell a fire on the suspected pirate craft ignited by the warships' machine guns. No Americans were injured.

Cmdr. Jeff Breslau, a spokesman for the U.S. Navy Central Command at Bahrain, said the USS Cape St. George, a guided-missile cruiser, and the USS Gonzalez, a guided-missile destroyer, were conducting security patrols in international waters off Somalia's central coast when they spotted a small utility boat towing a pair of skiffs.

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