Boat Passengers Forced Into Sea at Gunpoint

M O G A D I S H U, Somalia, May 18 -- Passengers were forced to jump intothe sea at gunpoint after the cargo boat they were traveling indeveloped engine problems, a radio operator and local journalistssaid today. At least 86 people were reported killed.

An official in the coastal Somaliland village of Lasqoryconfirmed the incident, journalists said. The official, MohamedAden Issa, said 70 passengers survived, but said five of themdied today of malnutrition.

The boat left the Bosaso port in the northeastern region of Puntland 10 days ago headed to Yemen with more than 150 people aboard, the radio operator said. The exact number on board was unknown.

A fishing boat later towed the vessel from the Gulf of Aden toLasqory with the survivors on board, the operator said fromLasqory, communicating by two-way VHF radio.

The radio operator and local journalists said at least 86 people were dead but it was not clear how they died.

Looking for Answers

The crew's whereabouts were not known, according to Issa. Theinformation could not immediately be confirmed.

Hundreds of people have been trying to reach Yemen insail-powered dhows or cargo boats in search of work since somePersian Gulf countries began banning livestock from Somalia.

The ban followed an outbreak of Rift Valley fever, amosquito-borne virus transmitted from livestock to humans, in SaudiArabia. Livestock is Somalia's main export to Yemen and SaudiArabia.

Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in May 1991, fourmonths after the ouster of Somalia's President Mohamed Siad Barreand the collapse of the central government. Puntland declaredautonomy in July 1998. Neither region is internationallyrecognized.