Armed Islamists will attack pirates, says militant
Last Updated: Friday, November 21, 2008 | 3:08 PM ET
CBC News
A group of armed Islamist militants is reportedly headed to a Somali port Friday to attack pirates holding hostage a massive Saudi Arabian oil tanker.
Ships belonging to Muslim countries should not be seized, Abdelghafar Musa, a fighter with the Islamist group al-Shabab, told the Associated Press.
This undated picture taken at an unknown location shows the Saudi oil supertanker MV Sirius Star, which has been hijacked by Somali pirates. (Christian Duys/Associated Press)
"We are really sorry to hear that the Saudi ship has been held in Somalia. We will fight [the pirates]," Musa, who claims to speak on behalf of all Islamic fighters in the Horn of Africa nation, told the Associated Press Television News.
Somali pirates captured the Sirius Star last weekend about 450 nautical miles southeast of Kenya's Mombasa port. It's believed to be anchored in the port of Haradheere, about midway up Somalia's coastline.
Islamist fighters also reportedly arrived at the Somali port of Haradheere seeking information on the Sirius Star, said a local elder.
"The Islamists arrived searching for the pirates and the whereabouts of the Saudi ship," said the elder, who declined to be named.
"I saw four cars full of Islamists driving in the town from corner to corner. The Islamists say they will attack the pirates for hijacking a Muslim ship."
Islamist leaders, fighting a two-year insurgency against the government and its Ethiopian military allies, deny allegations they collude with pirates and insist they will stamp down on them if they win power.
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