Somali pirates hijack Greek-flagged supertanker
NAIROBI. December 1. KAZINFORM Somali pirates seized a supertanker carrying crude oil from Saudi Arabia to the United States in the increasingly dangerous waters off East Africa, an official said on Monday, an attack that could pose a huge environmental or security threat to the region, Kazinform refers to Arab News.
The Greece-flagged Maran Centaurus was hijacked on Sunday northeast of the Seychelles about 1,300 km off the coast of Somalia, said Cmdr. John Harbor, a spokesman for the EU Naval Force.
Harbor said it originated from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and was destined for the United States. Maran Centaurus, with a crew of nine Greeks, 16 Filipinos, two Ukrainians and a Romanian, is a very large crude carrier, or VLCC. The shipping intelligence company Lloyd's List said the ship has a capacity of over 300,000 tons. The tanker was headed for the lawless Horn of Africa state's coast late Monday, a Kenyan maritime official told AFP. It was expected to arrive off Somalia's coast Tuesday morning.
The pirates may anchor the huge vessel either off Hobyo or Harardhere - pirate dens in northern Somalia - the EU naval force Atalante said in a statement.
Pirates have increased attacks on vessels off East Africa for the millions in ransom that can be had. Though pirates have successfully hijacked dozens of vessels the last several years, Sunday's attack appears to be only the second ever on an oil tanker.
In late 2007, pirates hijacked a chemical tanker carrying up to 10,000 tons of highly explosive benzene. Initially, American intelligence agents worried terrorists from Somalia's extremist insurgency could be involved, and might try to crash the boat into an offshore oil platform or use it as a gigantic bomb.
When the Japanese vessel was towed back into Somali waters and ransom demanded, the coalition was relieved to realize it was just another pirate attack.
Meanwhile, the UN Security Council on Monday renewed authorization for measures to combat piracy off Somalia's coast and warned nations against paying pirates ransoms to free hijacked ships. The 15 members of the United Nations council unanimously approved resolution 1897 extending anti-piracy measures for a year.
Resolution 1897 gives foreign nations fighting piracy authorization through Nov. 30, 2010 to send warships into Somalia's territorial waters, under an agreement with the Somali government, Kazinform cites Arab News. See www.arabnews.com for full version.