Britain's foreign secretary, David Miliband said in Beirut that his country would lead a European operation against piracy in the Gulf of Aden from next month.

David Miliband, Britain's foreign secretary, said, "Piracy is a scourge, whatever it appears anywhere in the world, and at the moment the scourge is focused in the Gulf of Aden. It's very, very important that the whole world recognizes that this is a threat to trade and to prosperity. "

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said in his quarterly report to the Security Council that pirates operating in the waters off Somalia are estimated to have netted between 25 million and 30 million dollars in ransom this year.

The UN Chief said the surge in piracy and armed robbery against ships along the Somali coast has severely affected trade. The grave situation is also contributing to a humanitarian crisis in the country, and further weakening its transitional federal government.

Stepped-up patrols in the dangerous area are already underway. The Indian Navy has confirmed that their warship, the -- INS Tabar -- destroyed a suspected pirate ship that had opened fire in the Gulf of Aden late on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, eight suspected Somali pirates were arraigned in a Mombasa court on Tuesday. They were caught about a week ago by crew members from Britain's Royal Navy frigate HMS Cumberland, off the Gulf of Aden.