Pirates release yacht's crew

"The President expresses his deep gratitude to the French armed forces and all the state services which enabled a rapid and peaceful solution to this hostage-taking,'' a statement said today, giving no further details.

The pirates stormed the French-owned yacht, the Ponant, last Friday as it was crossing the Gulf of Aden and sailed it to the Somali coast, eventually mooring the vessel at Garacade, near the town of Eyl.

The French Defence Ministry said 22 of the crew were French, including six women.

The rest were believed to be Ukrainian and Korean.

The boat's owners said during the week that they had been well treated.

Piracy is lucrative off lawless Somalia and most kidnappers treat their captives well in anticipation of a good ransom.

It was not immediately clear if any ransom was paid in this case.

France dispatched a small French warship to track the Ponant and also sent special forces to nearby Djibouti in case the situation deteriorated.

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