AND AGAIN - AT 11:18 A.M. ET: 

ON BOARD NRB CORTE-REAL, April 11 (Reuters) - A U.S.-owned, Italian-flagged tugboat reported hijacked in the Gulf of Aden has 10 Italian citizens among its 16-member crew, according to NATO alliance officials on a warship in the region.

Lieutenant Sergio Carvalho, on the Portuguese warship NRB Corte-Real, said the tugboat issued a distress call before communications went silent six minutes later.

COMMENT:  Obviously, the pirate issue is becoming bigger than it has been.  Look for the Mattel pirate toy, multicultural.

April 11, 2009