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| Somali tanker pirates 'want $25m' | Somali tanker pirates 'want $25m' |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| Pirates who hijacked a Saudi oil tanker off the Somali coast are reported to have demanded a $25m (£17m) ransom. | Pirates who hijacked a Saudi oil tanker off the Somali coast are reported to have demanded a $25m (£17m) ransom. |
| The AFP news agency, quoting one of the pirates, says the owners have been set a 10-day deadline to hand over the sum. | The AFP news agency, quoting one of the pirates, says the owners have been set a 10-day deadline to hand over the sum. |
| The Sirius Star is the biggest tanker ever hijacked, carrying a cargo of two million barrels of Saudi oil - worth more than $100m. | The Sirius Star is the biggest tanker ever hijacked, carrying a cargo of two million barrels of Saudi oil - worth more than $100m. |
| "We do not want long-term discussions to resolve the matter," the agency quoted Mohamed Said as saying. | "We do not want long-term discussions to resolve the matter," the agency quoted Mohamed Said as saying. |
| "The Saudis have 10 days to comply, otherwise we will take action that could be disastrous," he added, without elaborating. | |
| On Wednesday, Saudi officials confirmed that the ship's owners are in talks with the pirates, but Vela International, which operates the Sirius Star, has not commented about claims of negotiations. | |
| The 25 captive crew on the Sirius Star include two British citizens, two Poles, one Croatian, one Saudi national and 19 Filipinos. | |
| The pirates who seized the tanker on Saturday are a sophisticated group with contacts in Dubai and neighbouring countries, says the BBC Somali Service's Yusuf Garaad. | |
| Much of their ransom money from previous hijackings has been used to buy new boats and weapons as well as develop a network across the Horn of Africa, he adds. |