[classicman]

NAIROBI (Reuters) - A U.S. warship captured five suspected pirates on Thursday after an exchange of fire in the Indian Ocean west of the Seychelles, the U.S. navy said.

After the clash, the U.S. warship chased the suspected pirate ship, which had been damaged, until it stopped, it said.

It captured three pirates on the skiff and another two on the mother ship. The United States said that it expected pirates to increase attacks on merchant vessels due to better weather from March through May.

"USS Nicholas captured suspected pirates on Thursday after exchanging fire, sinking a skiff, and confiscating a suspected mother ship," the U.S. Navy said in a statement. It did not say whether the pirates were Somalis.

Pirate sources and a maritime source said that a Taiwanese ship had also been hijacked on Thursday.

Somali pirates are seizing ships as far as the Mozambique Channel and off the coast of India and have started targeting ships bringing merchandise to Mogadishu's port.

They are holding captive at least eight mechanised Indian dhows, or small boats. Seven of them, with 100 crew members, were hijacked over the weekend on their way to the United Arab Emirates from Somalia.

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