Are Somali pirates and their affiliates using Facebook to organize and support ship hijackings?  Experts at the United Nations say that this is the case and complain that Facebook has been ignoring their requests for information on Facebook accounts belonging to individuals involved in hijackings and hostage-taking.

UN report slams Facebook for ignoring requests for information about suspect Somali pirates using the site

In a new report released Friday, the experts — who monitor a UN arms embargo against Somalia as well as sanctions against accused pirates and Shebab Islamists — say Facebook has failed to respond to “repeated” approaches.

The sanctions investigators say Somalia’s notorious piracy business is supported by accomplices who could be bankers, businessmen, politicians or aid workers “all using their regular occupations or positions to facilitate one or another network.

“Investigations have confirmed that these myriad facilitators are interlinked through various communication channels and employ social network services, such as Facebook,” said the report.

“Despite repeated official correspondence addressed to Facebook Inc., it has never responded to monitoring group requests to discuss information on Facebook accounts belonging to individuals involved in hijackings and hostage-taking,” the experts said in the report prepared for the Security Council.