Somali Pirates Form Unholy Alliance with Islamists

Warships have done little to deter Somalia's pirates. But following the latest spate of hijackings, the West plans to take a more robust approach to protecting shipping. Intelligence agencies are alarmed at the pirates' increasingly close ties to Islamist groups. A sack filled with $1 million (€770,000) in $100 bills weighs just under 15 kilos (33 pounds). Occasionally $3 million in ransom money is paid to Somali pirates for a hijacked freighter and its crew. That's nearly 45 kilos.
Delivering millions of dollars to the pirates is a hell of a job, says Jack Cloonan, a security expert from New York. "Remember, they're sitting there and they're all armed to the teeth," he says. "And you're sitting there in your rubber raft: 'Here's one for you, and one for you ... '"more..http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,620027,00.html
habar-gidir factional leader Terrorist Yusuf Mohamed Pirate Ransom Helped Somalia Islamist hawiye al-shabaab