Somali Pirates Hijack Saudi Oil Tanker
Posted on November 17, 2008
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Just six weeks after Somali pirates had hijacked a Ukrainian ship bound for Kenya, Somali pirates have reportedly hijacked a Saudi oil tanker off the eastern coast of Africa. The 1,000 ft-long Sirius Star, which had been headed for the United States, is reported to be the largest ship hijacked to date.
Britain announced earlier this month that it would take the lead in a multi-national taskforce designed to tackle the heavily armed gangs patrolling the Arabian Sea. In the mean time, some shipping companies have taken matters into their own hands by refusing to navigate these dangerous waters, resulting in costly delays as a result of longer shipping routes.
For more information, read the full story here.
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2 Responses to “Somali Pirates Hijack Saudi Oil Tanker”
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Linked to this page through the CNN site. The CNN article quotes the Navy as saying:
“Campbell said the Navy does not expect to dispatch a vessel to aide the super tanker because it does not have dangerous weapons aboard like the MV Faina, a Ukrainian ship loaded with arms that was seized by pirates on September 25.”
I think a supertanker with 2 million gallons of oil is, by definition, a dangerous weapon.
I didn’t even know pirates still existed. I hear they don’t look like real pirates, but instead like military combatants.