Navy Photos Show Cargo

U.S. Navy photos depict a cargo of what is apparently three million dollars in ransom,dropping by parachute onto a Saudi oil tanker that pirates have held since 15 November,2008.A negotiator told The Associated Press the Somali pirates had released the ship in exchange for the money.The pirates had originally demanded 25 million for the ship and its two million barrels of oil,which was worth about 100 million dollars.The tanker had been taken more than 500 miles,or 804.65 km,out to sea in the Indian Ocean.This was despite the patrols of warships in the region.Although the security effort has been stepped up,with ships from the U.S.,U.K.,Germany,France,India and China now participating,it is unlikely maritime patrols alone can stop all,or even most,of the pirates.There are too many pirates with too many weapons for that.Only a stable Somalia with good economic prospects can ultimately solve the problem,and those conditions are nowhere in sight.