Iran says it will consider a military option against pirates, who hijacked an Iranian ship in the Gulf of Aden taking its crew hostage.

Parviz Sarvari, a member of the Iranian parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, said Iran considers a diplomatic solution to the issue reached through international cooperation the better option.

"However, the military approach is among the options that Iran's National Security Commission is mulling over," Sarvari cautioned.

Earlier in November, Somali pirates captured the Hong Kong-flagged cargo ship Delight, which was chartered by an Iranian company, along with its 25 crewmembers in the Gulf of Aden. The ship was carrying 36,000 metric tons of wheat.

The Iranian official said the United States indifference to the matter translates into showing a green light to organized crime in Somalia and its territorial waters.

Sarvari warned that an apathetic approach toward piracy would challenge global economy, leading to economic recession and subjecting prices to fluctuation.

More than 15 vessels from various countries have been trapped in the pirate-infested waters off the coast of Somalia, including a Ukrainian vessel, a Saudi oil tanker, and the Hong Kong-flagged ship carrying Iran's cargo.

CS/HGH