Somali troops rescue 22 hostages from pirates

Troops from the autonomous Somali region of Puntland said on Sunday they have freed 22 hostages, including Indians, who were captured by pirates on a ship off the Yemeni coast in 2009. The rescued crew members were believed to hail from several countries including Ghana, India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sudan and Yemen.Piracy has long flourished off war-torn Somalia, outwitting international efforts to stamp out the scourge, including patrols by warships and tough sentencing of captured pirates.