New York, Apr 16 : US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has announced new plans to battle the pirates in Gulf of Aden, which includes snatching their stolen booty, as the war on pirates escalated sharply in the Indian Ocean.

"We may be dealing with a 17th century crime, but we need to bring 21st century solutions to bear. Those plotting attacks must be stopped, and those who have carried them out must be brought to justice," the Daily News quoted Clinton, as saying.

Amid new pirate threats to kill Americans, the Obama Administration is convening an emergency summit tomorrow to coordinate the State, Defense, Justice, Transportation and Homeland Security departments on the "scourge of piracy".

Clinton said she would work with the Somali Government to crack down on pirate dens and make marine marauding less appealing to young Somali men; enlist foreign governments, shipping firms and insurance companies to better coordinate security and counterattacks, and try to seize the pirates' assets.

"They're buying faster and more capable vessels. There are ways to crack down on companies that would do business with pirates," she said.

Earlier, angry pirates who fired grenades at another American relief ship called it revenge for Sunday's rescue of Captain Richard Phillips by Navy Seals who killed his three pirate captors. (ANI)