The owner of a Saudi-owned oil supertanker hijacked by Somali pirates says the 25 crew members are safe. The French news agency quotes a company official of the Dubai-based Vela International as saying the crew is "in good health, none of them has been harmed."
Lieutenant Nathan Christensen, U.S. Navy spokesman for the Navy's Fifth Fleet , said Monday the ship was heading toward an anchorage point off the Somali port of Eyl.
The port is known as a haven for pirates who have seized dozens of ships off Somalia this year.
The Navy says this latest hijacking occurred more than 800 kilometers off the coast of Kenya - well beyond where Somali pirates normally operate.
At the Pentagon in Washington, the Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Michael Mullen, says he is "stunned" at how far the pirates are able to reach.
He described them as well armed and very good at what they do.
Pirates took over the Saudi-owned tanker Sirius Star on Saturday.
Pirates based in Somalia have made the waters off east Africa some of the most dangerous in the world. Maritime officials say the pirates have hijacked more than 30 ships this year. Most were released after ransom payments often exceeding a million dollars.
The pirates are currently holding at least 11 ships, including a Ukrainian cargo ship carrying 33 tanks.
World powers including the United States, Russia and NATO have all sent ships to the region in an effort to stop the pirates.
Reported by VOA News
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