Somali pirates say a hijacked a yacht carrying four Americans is expected to arrive in Somalia Sunday, likely reducing any chance of a speedy rescue.
U.S. authorities have been weighing possible responses to the hijacking in the Arabian Sea, off the coast of Somalia.
A spokesman at the U.S. embassy in Nairobi, Kenya says all relevant U.S. government agencies are also monitoring the situation.
Officials say pirates commandeered the U.S. flagged yacht Quest off the coast of Somalia Friday.
The yacht – home to the American couple Scott and Jean Adam – has been sailing around the world since late 2004 distributing Bibles in a variety of countries.
The hijacking comes a few days after a New York judge sentenced a Somali pirate to 33 years in prison for the 2009 hijacking of the Maersk Alabama container ship. A second pirate was shot and killed during an operation to rescue the Maersk's captain.
International naval patrols off Somalia's coast have had little success in stopping pirates from attacking ships in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean.
Pirates have made hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years hijacking and holding ships ransom.