When news broke today that Somali pirates had attacked and captured a Saudi oil tanker called the Sirius Star, our weekend editor Victor Ozols wondered "if there are really more pirate attacks these days, or just more pirate attack stories." Hard to say, though the number of attacks--and stories--should go down now that international naval patrols are plying the treacherous Gulf of Aden, where most Somali pirates operate. Only problem with that? The oil tanker captured today was hijacked 518 miles southeast of Mombasa, Kenya, well outside the so-called Maritime Security Patrol Area.
The ship is also one of the largest ever captured by Somali pirates, carrying the equivalent of one-quarter of Saudi Arabia's daily oil production. A US navy spokesman told Reuters:
This is unprecedented. It's the largest ship that we've seen pirated. It's three times the size of an aircraft carrier.
The Sirius Star was actually sailing toward the Cape of Good Hope and planning to avoid the Gulf of Aden entirely. Which is probably a smart play: There have been more than 70 attacks or attempted attacks off the coast of Somalia this year alone.
Related Stories:
· Somali Pirates Grab Saudi Oil Tanker [Reuters, via NYT]
· Timeline of Piracy in the Gulf of Aden [UK Times]
· Piracy in Somalia [Wikipedia]
· Somali Bandits Still Sailing Weapons-Filled Tanker [Jaunted]
[Photo of your typical pirate vessel: Wikimedia]]]>
