News Service from House Harris

AFR: Soamli fighters warn pirates to free tanker, or face attack<

MOGADISHU, Nov 23 AFP - Somali Islamist fighters on Sunday urged piratesholding a Saudi super-tanker to free the ship or face armed action.

"If the pirates want peace, they had better release the tanker," Sheikh Ahmed, a spokesman for the Shebab group in the coastal region of Harardhere, told Agence France-Presse by phone.

The Sirius Star, a huge tanker carrying aboutUS100 million worth of crudeoil and owned by Saudi Aramco, was hijacked by Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean on November 15.

Pirates have since anchored it off their base in Harardhere and have demanded a ransom ofUS25 million be paid by November 30.

The Shebab (youth) armed group controls much of southern and central Somalia, and has positioned fighters in and around Harardhere in recent days.

Islamist leaders have stressed that piracy is a capital offence in Islam and officially condemned the surge in acts of piracy in Somalia's waters.

A member of the pirate group holding the Sirius Star retorted that his own men were not afraid of the Shebab's threats.

"We are the Shebab of the sea and we can't be scared by the Shebab of the land," Mohamed Said told AFP.

"If anybody attempts to attack, that would be suicide."

Said told AFP on Thursday that his group was demandingUS25 million to release the vessel, which is carrying the equivalent of almost a quarter of top producer Saudi Arabia's daily output.

"I am not on the tanker at the moment because I am co-ordinating what is happening on the ground," he said.

"There is a small Shebab vanguard on the ground but we also have a strong presence."

"Every Somali has great respect for the holy kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We have nothing against them but unfortunately what happened was just business for us and I hope the Saudis will understand," the pirate said.

Some residents in Harardhere have argued however that the Shebab are divided over the issue of piracy and that some of the Islamist fighters have moved into the region only to claim a share of the ransom.