Probably victims of Ijaw extremists (who are animists and Christians), but there is a growing Islamist movement in Nigeria as well with its accompanying violence. Nigeria is proof that oil has a terrible track record at making nations wealthy.

UPDATE: Regular commenter Jesusland Joe informs me that his cousin works for Shell in Nigeria. If any one learns of the name of the hostage, please e-mail me. We pray that this hostage will be released unharmed. UPDATE II: Jesusland Joe has confirmed his cousin is o.k.

Washington Post:

Gunmen stormed an offshore oil platform run by Royal Dutch Shell in Nigeria and kidnapped four foreign workers, including an American, while apparent sabotage ruptured a pipeline at a facility processing 106,000 barrels of crude daily, officials said Thursday.

Gunmen in three boats seized the workers from a support vessel attached to the oil platform Wednesday, Shell spokesman Andy Corrigan said in London.

Military spokesman Maj. Said Hameed said the four included an American, a Bulgarian, a Briton and a Honduran, and "efforts are being made to secure their release."

In a separate incident, a major pipeline feeding Shell's Forcados oil export terminal ruptured overnight at Brass Creek, forcing the company to stop production of 106,000 barrels of oil daily, Shell said.

A Shell spokesman in Lagos said the pipeline exploded, though details were sketchy. In December, a major Shell pipeline was blown up by unknown attackers, forcing the company to shut down large volumes of crude oil.

Posted by: Rusty at 04:55 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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