SHIPS HELD BY PIRATES

FACTBOX-Ships held by Somali pirates

Wed Nov 19, 2008 9:12pm IST

Nov 19 (Reuters) - Somali pirates have seized at least 36 ships this year, according to the International Maritime Bureau. At least 14 ships with 243 crew are still held, including Saudi tanker Sirius Star, the biggest ship ever hijacked.

Below are some of the ships believed to be held:

CENTAURI: Seized Sept. 17. Had 26 Filipino sailors on board. It was attacked off Somalia by pirates in a speed boat, armed with three rocket launchers.

CAPT. STEPHANOS: Seized Sept. 21. The freighter was flying the Bahamas flag. It was carrying a cargo of coal and has 17 Filipinos, one Chinese and a Ukrainian aboard.

FAINA: Seized Sept. 24. The ship was carrying 33 T-72 tanks, grenade launchers and ammunition destined for Kenya's Mombasa port. Pirates have demanded $20 million in ransom.

AFRICAN SANDERLING: Seized Oct. 15. The Panama-flagged, Japanese-operated, and Korea-owned bulk carrier has 21 Filipino crew aboard.

STOLT STRENGTH: Seized Nov. 10. The chemical tanker with 23 Filipino crew aboard was hijacked by pirates in the Gulf of Aden. It was carrying 23,818 tonnes of oil products

THE KARAGOL: Seized Nov. 12. The Turkish ship with 14 crew, was hijacked off Yemen. It was transporting more than 4,000 tonnes of chemicals to the port of Bombay.

TIANYU 8: Seized Nov. 13/14. The Chinese fishing boat was reported seized off Kenya. The crew included 15 Chinese, one Taiwanese, one Japanese, three Filipinos and four Vietnamese.

CHEMSTAR VENUS: Seized Nov. 15. The combined chemical and oil tanker was travelling from Dumai, Indonesia to the Ukraine. It had 18 Filipino and five South Korean crew.

SIRIUS STAR: Seized Nov. 15. The Saudi supertanker, the biggest ship ever hijacked, held as much as 2 million barrels of oil. Captured off east Africa, it had 25 crew from Croatia, Britain, the Philippines, Poland and Saudi Arabia.

THE DELIGHT: Seized. Nov. 18. The Hong Kong-flagged ship with 25 crew aboard is loaded with 36,000 tonnes of wheat bound for Iran. It was captured off the coast of Yemen.