France frees yacht off Somalia

By Crispian Balmer

PARIS (Reuters) - A French hostage was killed and four others were freed on Friday when French forces attacked pirates who had seized their yacht off Somalia, officials said.

Two pirates were shot dead during the military assault and three were captured.

Pirates seized the sailing boat Tanit, carrying two couples and a 3-year-old boy at the time, far from the coast of the east African country on April 4.

French Defence Minister Herve Morin said the father of the child, Florent Lemacon, died during Friday's rescue mission, which lasted a few minutes.

A military official said elite forces shot dead two pirates who were on deck when they stormed the boat.

Lemacon had been in the cabin at the time and it was not clear if he was killed in the crossfire or deliberately shot by one of his captives. The four French survivors were unharmed and put on a navy vessel bound for Djibouti.

France has taken a leading role in international efforts to halt rampant hijackings off Somalia and its forces have captured at least 60 pirates since April 2008, bringing several of them to Paris for eventual trial.

"France will never give into pirates' blackmail or to terrorism," Morin told a news conference.