A huge Saudi-owned oil tanker, the Sirius Star, was seized by pirates on Saturday as it headed toward the U.S. with 2 million barrels of oil and 25 crew members on board. The tanker is now on its way to Somalia.

BBC:

According to the Navy, the ship is “nearing an anchorage point” at Eyl, a port often used by pirates based in Somalia’s Puntland region.

War-torn Somalia has not had an effective government since 1991.

A BBC correspondent in Mombasa reports that this is the third tanker to have been hijacked in the region.

News of the attack raised crude oil prices on global markets following an earlier slump, Reuters news agency reported.

The capture of the tanker appears to mark a worrying new development, both in terms of the size of the ship and the fact it was attacked so far from the African coast.

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In this Article:
#oil and gas industry#pirates#saudi arabia#somalia#tank