...a region in northeastern Somalia, centered on Garowe in the Nugaal province. Its leaders declared the territory an autonomous state in 1998. Puntland and the equally autonomous Somaliland seem to have avoided the clan rivalries and warlordism that have typified the rest of Somalia, which puts both places high on the list for Islamic subversion...
region with flames seen rising from what was possibly a foreign naval vessel, an official has told Rooters.
"We heard (a) huge kaboom and flame rising from the ship. I believe that the ship is foreign," Ali Shire, mayor of Puntland’s port town of Alula, a pirate haven, told Rooters on Tuesday.
He said he believed the ship was likely a naval vessel because two foreign navy ships had helped rescue the crew.
It was not immediately clear whether the kaboom on Monday afternoon was caused by an accident onboard the vessel or was triggered by pirate attackers. It was also not clear whether the vessel had sunk after the blast.
Somali pirates often prowl waters around Alula. In March, pirates hijacked an oil tanker, Aris 13, with eight Sri Lankan crew on board, the first time a commercial ship was commandeered in the region since 2012.