BERLIN, Nov 25 (Reuters) - Germany could send up to 1,400 soldiers to the Gulf of Aden as part of a European Union operation to fight pirates off the coast of Somalia, government sources said on Tuesday.

German soldiers could also serve aboard ships that had to be protected, the sources said, adding no final decision on Berlin's involvement had been made. The German cabinet is set to decide on the issue at the beginning of next month.

The EU agreed earlier this month to deploy an air and naval force off the coast of Somalia. The operation, due to be launched next month, is expected to involve five to six ships at any given time, as well as maritime surveillance aircraft.

Officials said on Tuesday Somali pirates had hijacked a Yemeni ship loaded with steel in the Gulf of Aden, a major sea lane for Middle East oil shipments which is used by vessels heading to and from the Suez canal.

German forces currently serve at the Horn of Africa under the U.S.-led "Operating Enduring Freedom" and have come to the aid of ships which have been attacked.

However, Germany's defence ministry says that mission only allows them to provide emergency assistance, not to directly target pirates.

Defence Minister Franz Josef Jung has said clarifying legal questions for soldiers operating in the region was crucial because some countries had been forced to release captured pirates due to lack of jurisdictional clarity.

Berlin has been seeking to expand its role in overseas missions in the last decade and currently has forces in countries including Afghanistan, Kosovo and Lebanon. But many Germans remain uneasy about the emergence of a strong army.

Last month, the German parliament voted to increase Berlin's participation in a NATO peacekeeping operation in Afghanistan, despite strong voter opposition.

(Reporting by Sabine Siebold; Writing by Kerstin Gehmlich)

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