THE BRIEFING: Business as Usual

Just two days after US Naval forces saved a captured American captain, Pirates continue to seize ships on their coast. On Monday Somali pirates vowed to retaliate for the deaths of three of the four pirates who were holding the American captain.

"Every country will be treated the way it treats us," said one of the pirates to the Associated Press. "In the future, America will be the one mourning and crying. We will retaliate for the killings of our men."

From CNN.com

(CNN) -- Pirates off the coast of Somalia hijacked a second freighter Tuesday, a NATO spokesman said.

Pirates on four skiffs seized the 5,000-ton MV Sea Horse, a Lebanese-owned and Togo-flagged vessel, Cmdr. Chris Davies said from NATO's Maritime Component Command Headquarters in Northwood, England.

Earlier Tuesday, pirates hijacked the MV Irene EM, a 35,000-ton, Greek-owned bulk carrier in the Gulf of Aden, Davies and the European Union's Maritime Security Center said.

The crew of the Greek carrier was thought to be unhurt, and ships have been warned to stay clear of the area for fear of further attack, the security center said.

NATO has an ongoing anti-piracy mission off Somalia called Operation Allied Protector. The mission involves four ships covering more than 1 million square miles, Davies said.

A U.S.-led international naval task force, Combined Task Force-151, also is patrolling in the region.

For a different perspective, check K'naan speaking out.