Canadian , British warships on active patrol prevent hijacking of Norwegian vessels . Pirates captured after seven - hour battle , but then released , NATO says . Lacking formal procedure , NATO generally takes pirates ' weapons but lets them go . The pirates were captured at 1 a.m. Sunday after they threw weapons , ladders and scaling equipment overboard , Davies said . Sunday attack latest in a long string of hijackings and attempts in Gulf of Aden .
Canadian , British warships on active patrol prevent hijacking of Norwegian vessels . Pirates captured after seven - hour battle , but then released , NATO says . Lacking formal procedure , NATO generally takes pirates ' weapons but lets them go . Sunday attack latest in a long string of hijackings and attempts in Gulf of Aden .