Sightings of the Sirius Star are being reported off the pirate haven
of Eyl.

The giant supertanker with a 100 million dollar cargo of oil is the biggest
ship ever seized by Somali pirates in an attack considerably further than
their usual stamping ground in the Gulf of Aden.

Reuters -
The hijacking of the Saudi-operated Sirius Star by Somali pirates has
caused an international shock wave.

The ship, three times the size of a military aircraft carrier and laden
with 100 million dollars worth of oil is the largest vessel ever seized by the
pirates.

They managed to take it more than 800 kilometres off shore in the Indian
Ocean a long way from their normal Gulf of Aden stamping ground.

U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Michael Mullen says it's an incredibly
bold crime.

U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Michael Mullen saying,
"I am stunned by the range of it, less so than the size. Therese
are, they have proven to be pretty capable, they can get on and off lots of
vessels. I mean, this is 300, 000 tons, three times bigger than one of our
aircraft carriers."

There have been reported sightings of a large ship off the remote coastal
village of Eyl in semi-autonomous Puntland Province, a haven for the
pirates.

The seizure of the Sirius Star was carried out despite international naval
patrols in the face of growing pirate activity.

Given the likelihood that the pirates are in most cases heavily armed,
ship owners are more inclined to negotiate payment of a ransom than rely in
military intervention.

The Sirius Star is one of more than 90 ships hijacked by pirates off
Somalia this year.

More than a dozen remain in the hands of the pirates with some 250 crew
members.

Paul Chapman, Reuters