NAIROBI, March 30 (Xinhua) -- A Seychelles coastguard vessel has repelled an attack by Somali pirates, following the rescuing of 27 fishermen in the Indian Ocean, media reported on Tuesday.

The report quoted a statement by a coastguard officer as saying that one of the two coastguard vessels was the Topaz. After the ship was under attack and returned fire at pirates late Monday, two boats of the pirates were destroyed.

The development came after Somali pirates have seized a United Arab Emirates (UAE)-owned cargo ship with 24 crew members aboard in the world's most dangerous waters of Somalia.

Piracy has become rampant off the coast of Africa, especially in the waters near Somalia, which has been without an effective government since 1991.

Ransoms started out in the tens of thousands of dollars and have since climbed into the millions.

The Horn of Africa nation is at the entrance to the Gulf of Aden, which leads to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, one of the world's most important shipping channels.