Somali pirates eye food instead of ransom

Pirates who seized a ship loaded with food destined for hungry Somalis are now interested in its cargo of rice instead of the ransom they earlier demanded, the vessel's shipping agent said on Tuesday.

Seaborne Somalia militiamen hijacked the MV Semlow last month as it steamed toward the northern port of Bossaso carrying 850 tons of rice donated by Japan and Germany to the United Nations' World Food Programme.

The food was to help thousands of Somalis hit by the December 26 tsunami that swept across the Indian Ocean after an undersea earthquake off north Indonesia.

The pirates initially demanded $500 000 ransom for the eight Kenyan crew members, Sri Lankan captain and Tanzanian engineer.