By Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS, Oct 7 (Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council on Tuesday again urged countries with naval vessels deployed around the Horn of Africa to do whatever is needed to stamp out piracy off the coast of Somalia. The 15-nation council passed a similar resolution in June that gave countries the right to actively combat a surge in ship hijackings around Somalia for ransom. But pirates have continued to capture vessels in what is now one of the world's most dangerous shipping zones. The legally-binding resolution, which the council adopted unanimously, "calls upon States interested in the security of maritime activities to take part actively in the fight against piracy on the high seas off the coast of Somalia, in particular by deploying naval vessels and military aircraft." The new resolution has no time limit but otherwise differs little from the one passed in June. Last month's capture of the Ukrainian ship MV Faina with 33 T-72 tanks aboard -- this year's most dramatic hijacking -- prompted the resolution. Pirates have attacked scores of vessels this year, reaping millions in ransoms and pushing up insurance costs for boats traveling near the lawless country. For the Faina and its 20-member crew, they are demanding $20 million. Other gangs are holding about a dozen ships with some 200 crew members close to the Somali coast. South Africa's U.N. Ambassador Dumisani Kumalo sharply criticized the French-drafted resolution, saying it was a stop-gap measure taken because a few major powers were annoyed with the rise in piracy. He said those powers were unwilling to deal with the root causes of the problem. He said hijackings would continue until there was stability in Somalia. But stability would not come until the council sends peacekeepers which it has been reluctant to do in the face of escalating violence. "It's just an excuse to sink a few boats," Kumalo told reporters about the new resolution. French Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert said the council was awaiting a report from U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on possible peacekeeping scenarios but this was no reason to delay action against piracy. (Editing by Alan Elsner)
Swaleh Ali Tunza, one of the eight suspected Kenyan terrorists, recovers at his Mewa Hospital bed in the Kenyan Coast town of Mombasa October 5, 2008 after an operation on a ...
