Militants issue hostages' pics

2006-02-24 12:22

Lagos - Nigerian militants released pictures of seven foreign oil worker hostages on Thursday, showing them sitting on a bench with guns pointed at their heads.

The pictures, taken in what appeared to be a jungle setting, were sent from an email address used previously by the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, which had sabotaged major oil installations.

The militants seized nine men, including the seven in the pictures, from a barge run by United States oil services company, Willbros, last Saturday.

The photographs were accompanied by a message reading: "Pictures of our guests along with a part of the unit that captured them."

Militants seize more foreigners

The hostages were three Americans, one Briton, two Egyptians, two Thais and one Filipino.

The militants had threatened to seize more foreigners from towns in the southern Niger Delta and warned of more attacks in the next few days in the world's eighth largest oil exporter, where output had already been cut by a fifth.

They said: "We are continuing with our attacks on oil facilities and oil workers in the next few days."

The attacks on oil pipelines, a major tanker loading terminal and production platforms had forced Royal Dutch Shell to reduce output by 455 000 barrels a day.

Wetlands region

The militants said the release of the nine hostages was linked to the release of two jailed Ijaw leaders and denied a government statement that talks were under way to secure their release.

The Ijaw was the dominant tribe in the vast wetlands region, which provided all of Nigeria's daily oil output of 2.4 million barrels.

The militants had also demanded more local control over the delta's huge oil wealth.

Analysts linked the insurgency in the far south with political instability ahead of elections in the multi-ethnic country next year, after several different geo-political zones were vying to take over from President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Religious riots in the north and southeast, also linked to election rivalry, had caused 146 deaths in the past five days.

- Reuters