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18/11/2008
Oil Tanker Crew Safe As Somali Pirates 'Open Negotiations'
Somali pirates who hijacked an oil tanker off the east coast of Africa have opened negotiations, it has emerged.
The Sirius Star, an oil tanker belonging to Dubai-based Vela International Marine Ltd., was seized by a group of armed men approximately 420 nautical miles off the coast of Somalia on Sunday.
A spokesman for the company said all 25 on board, including two Britons, are safe.
The large oil tanker is owned by Saudi oil company Aramco, however, it was sailing under a Liberian flag. The Sirius Star is the biggest tanker ever to be hijacked. It has a cargo of 2 million barrels, worth more than $100m - more than a quarter of Saudi Arabia's daily output.
The Vela International spokesman said: "All 25 crew members are reported to be safe and the vessel is fully laden.
"A vela response team has been established and is working to ensure the safe release of the crew members and the vessel."
Meanwhile, Britain has handed over eight Somali pirates to Kenyan authorities to prosecute, following last week's capture at sea.
Speaking in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, Bob Ainsworth, Britain's Armed Forces Minister, said: "I am pleased to announce that earlier today, the Royal Navy successfully completed a counter-piracy operation by handing over to the custody of the Kenyan police eight suspected pirates interdicted on the 11 November during an incident at sea."
The capture came after Plymouth-based HMS Cumberland and the Russian frigate Neustrashimy halted an attempted raid on a Danish vessel in the Gulf of Aden.
Two suspected pirates were shot dead in the operation.
(JM)
The Sirius Star, an oil tanker belonging to Dubai-based Vela International Marine Ltd., was seized by a group of armed men approximately 420 nautical miles off the coast of Somalia on Sunday.
A spokesman for the company said all 25 on board, including two Britons, are safe.
The large oil tanker is owned by Saudi oil company Aramco, however, it was sailing under a Liberian flag. The Sirius Star is the biggest tanker ever to be hijacked. It has a cargo of 2 million barrels, worth more than $100m - more than a quarter of Saudi Arabia's daily output.
The Vela International spokesman said: "All 25 crew members are reported to be safe and the vessel is fully laden.
"A vela response team has been established and is working to ensure the safe release of the crew members and the vessel."
Meanwhile, Britain has handed over eight Somali pirates to Kenyan authorities to prosecute, following last week's capture at sea.
Speaking in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, Bob Ainsworth, Britain's Armed Forces Minister, said: "I am pleased to announce that earlier today, the Royal Navy successfully completed a counter-piracy operation by handing over to the custody of the Kenyan police eight suspected pirates interdicted on the 11 November during an incident at sea."
The capture came after Plymouth-based HMS Cumberland and the Russian frigate Neustrashimy halted an attempted raid on a Danish vessel in the Gulf of Aden.
Two suspected pirates were shot dead in the operation.
(JM)
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Northern Ireland WeatherThis Evening and Tonight:Showers, scattered in the evening, will clear by midnight leaving the night dry with clear spells. Perhaps a touch of ground frost. Cloud will spread east towards morning. Minimum temperature 2 °C.
