Somalia: pirates of Saudi tankers calling for quick negotiations

The spokesman for Somali pirates aboard the supertanker Saudi Sirius Star, Mohamed Said, joined by telephone by AFP, called Wednesday the owners of the vessel to speed up negotiations on the ransom $ 25 million. Mohamed Said said that negotiations were profitable or hackers, nor the owners of the tanker, nor the 25 crew members. "We urge the Saudi owners of the tanker to conduct an honest dialogue in order to put an end to this crisis," said the spokesman for the pirates. "They should call the captain and items on the Sirius Star so we can expedite the negotiations," he added. "Too much waiting is harmful, as well as owners and crew of the boat. We do not currently make threats but we urge to be honest," he explained. The pirates are asking $ 25 million to release the supertanker and 300,000 tonnes of oil, they hold since Nov. 15. At their first public announcement of the amount of the ransom, they had set an ultimatum expires on 30 November. The capture of Sirius Star, along 330 meters, is the most spectacular operation conducted so far by Somali pirates who attacked a hundred boats since the beginning of the year. The supertanker, which was hijacked in the open Indian Ocean, is at anchor last week in the area of Harardhere, pirates lair located about 300 km north of Mogadishu.