Mar 25, 2008 7:15 am US/Eastern
Navy Says Cargo Ship Fired On Vessel In Suez Canal
1 Egyptian Killed In The Incident
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) ―
An American cargo ship under contract to the U.S. Navy opened fire on a small Egyptian boat while moving through the Suez Canal, the Navy said Tuesday. Egyptian authorities said at least one man was killed.
The Global Patriot was heading in the direction of the Mediterranean after dark Monday when it was approached by several small boats, according to both Navy and Egyptian officials.
"The ship warned the small boats - via bridge to bridge radio and a series of warning steps - to turn away. One small boat continued to approach the motor vessel, which then repeatedly fired shots," said the statement from the U.S. Fifth Fleet, which did not mention casualties.
The U.S. Navy is very careful about the activities of small boats near their war ships ever since the 2000 suicide attack by a motor boat on the USS Cole in Yemen killed 17 sailors. According to the U.S. statement, there was a Navy security team aboard the Global Patriot, which was under contract to the Navy's Military Sealift Command.
An Egyptian security official at the canal, speaking on customary condition of anonymity, said the ship fired several warning shots before shooting a man dead in the small motor boat and wounding three other men with him.
Small boats selling cigarettes and other products often swarm the civilian ships moving through the canal. These waterborne merchants know not to approach military vessels but the Global Patriot looked like a civilian ship, said the official.
Egyptian officials confirmed that as of 10 a.m. local time the ship was still in the canal, but expected it to leave in a matter of hours.
The Global Patriot is registered to the New York-based Global Container Lines and, according to the company Web site, the vessel trades between the United States, the Red Sea, the Persian Gulf and the East Africa.
Company representative Homruz Shayegan told The Associated Press by telephone from New York Monday that he had no information on the incident.
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