SANAA, Yemen, Dec. 5 -- Seven heavily armed suspected pirates were turned over to Yemeni authorities Friday after being rescued by a Danish warship.

The men were rescued Wednesday after they were found adrift in a skiff holding rocket-propelled grenades and AK-47s, Danish navy spokesman Jesper Lynge told CNN. The men were found about 75 nautical miles off the Yemeni coast.

"These guys had been without propulsion on their small boat for several days without food or drinking water," Lynge said.

The men were turned over to authorities after they received medical treatment aboard the Absalon, the spokesman said. The Danish vessel sank the skiff.

Danish military officials said they are considering whether elite military units should travel aboard freighters sailing off the piracy-prone coast of Somalia, Politiken. dk reported.

"We have a plan ... like a pilot system in which freighters either take on security guards or soldiers when they enter the area and land them on another vessel when they leave the area," says Per Bigum Christensen, operational commander of the U. N. 10-vessel fleet protecting international shipping along the Somali coast.

"About half of the vessels have private security companies on board and we can see that it works. It's a sensitive issue but it works," Bigum Christensen said.