Nigerian separatist rebels threatened to step up their attacks on foreign-owned oil facilities on Wednesday after dashing hopes that their three Western hostages would soon be released.
A spokesperson for the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (Mend) confirmed in a statement that the hostages — two Americans and a Briton — had been split up and warned of imminent raids across the region.
On Tuesday, a Mend commander telephoned Agence France-Presse and put a man identifying himself as US hostage Cody Oswald on the line. Oswald said he had not seen his fellow captives for two days and urged government to meet the rebels’ demands.
“We wish to dispel rumours being circulated in the Nigerian media amongst others of an impending release of the three hostages remaining in our custody,” said Wednesday’s statement from an e-mail address used by the hostage takers.
“The hostages have been separated for strategic reasons and all considerations to their comfort and well being [will be] disregarded henceforth,” it said.
“However, as previously stated, they will not be executed without good reason,” the group said, adding: “The following days will be bleak for the Nigerian oil industry. We will commence our long delayed attacks.
“Expatriates around the Niger Delta are advised again to leave as we do not wish to shed innocent blood. If they have no fear for their lives, they should endeavour to relocate their families,” the group said.
“In the event of an escalated confrontation with the Nigerian military, they and their families will be attacked without discrimination,” it warned.
Thousands of foreign nationals live and work in the Niger Delta, the heart of Africa’s biggest oil industry.
Oswald was kidnapped along with eight colleagues on February 18 when heavily armed ethnic Ijaw fighters attacked the oil giant Shell’s Forcados export terminal, set fire to a crude loading platform and blew up pipelines.
Six of the captives have since been released but, Oswald is still being held in the western delta swamps near the oil port of Warri, along with fellow American Russell Spell and British security expert John Hudspith.
The attacks have forced Shell and theUs gient Chevron to cut Nigeria’s oil output by a total of 468 000 barrels per day, or around 20%. – AFP