Somali pirates attack U.S. ship again

Somali pirates have attacked a U.S.-flagged ship for the second time.

Pirates attempted to take control of the Maersk Alabama on Wednesday by firing automatic weapons, according to the EU Naval Force. But this time the guards on board the ship fired back and repelled the attack.

The latest incident took place early Wednesday morning about 350 nautical miles east from the Somali coast.

When the pirates attacked the 155-meter-long ship, crew members from an "embarked Vessel Protection Detachment" stopped the attackers without any casualties, according to military officials. A nearby EU naval force vessel was dispatched to search for the pirates and "neutralize" the area, the EU naval force reported.

The Maersk was attacked last April and crew members held hostage during a days-long standoff that involved a dramatic rescue operation by U.S. naval forces.

The conflict last spring began when pirates boarded the Maersk Alabama, a Danish-operated vessel with a U.S. crew, as it attempted to deliver aid to African refugees. Pirates apparently attempted to extort a ransom for the return of the crew and cargo and crew members reportedly overpowered at least one of the four pirates, causing the other attackers to flee with the captain of the ship as a hostage.

The 20 unarmed crew members then negotiated an exchange of the pirate for the captain, who was taken off the ship with the pirates in one of the vessel's life boats. But after the crew released the pirate, the pirates refused to release the captain.

Captain Richard Phillips was held hostage until U.S. navy sharpshooters from the guided missile destroyer USS Bainbridge killed the pirates. "It took only three remarkable shots," the New York Times reported, "one each by snipers firing from a distance at dusk, using night-vision scopes." After the pirates were shot, the captain was rescued unharmed. President Barack Obama reportedly gave the order allowing U.S. sharpshooters to take out the pirates if the captain's life was in danger.

The April incident took place in a week in which six ships were hijacked by heavily armed pirates in the area, but it was the first American ship to be hijacked since the Barbary Wars, two conflicts between the U.S. and the Barbary States in North Africa in the early 19th century.

Since the first attack on the Maersk last spring, several other non U.S.-flagged ships have been attacked by pirates in the area.

Back in April, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton denounced the attack and called for international action to stop pirates from operating in the waters off the coast of Africa. "The world must come together to end the scourge of piracy," she said.