Somali president announces potential amnesty for pirates

August 03, 2012

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Pirates may be granted an amnesty if they release hostages and return captured vessels, Somali President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed told the London Times on Friday (August 3rd).

After campaigning in Balad, 40 kilometres north of Mogadishu, Ahmed said he was prepared to forego punishment for the 2,000 pirates thought to be operating off Somalia's coast.

"Those who leave behind what they have done will be forgiven," he said, according to AFP. "The government will make clear that the doors are open, if they want to come in."

Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali also voiced his support for the amnesty proposal. "There is no mercy for pirates, not from me, but if someone gives up and says, 'I repent and want forgiveness', then we have to do it," he said.

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