Unidentified helicopters have been tracking the Faina, a Ukrainian military supply vessel hijacked by Somali pirates on Thursday. In an exclusive telephone conversation with Press TV's Somalia correspondent, a member of the pirate group responsible for the capture of the Faina said that choppers were hovering over the ship which was in waters off the northern Harardheere coastline 400 kilometers north of Mogadishu in the Gulf of Aden.
The representative, identified only as "Garaard" added that the pirates in command of the vessel would not hesitate to set fire to it and kill the crew if military forces pursue them.
Faina and her crew were commandeered on Thursday whilst transporting military equipment, including 33 T-72 tanks, munitions, grenade launchers and other armaments to Kenya.
US and Russian naval vessels are also in pursuit of the ship which has been offered for a ransom of 35 million dollars.