MEND Nigeria-Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta-MEND-Official News Site -tracking News, Articles, Interviews and Opinions, related to MEND- from 1999 to Present

01/25/2007

Lagos — BARELY 24 hours after unknown gunmen abducted an American oil worker and his British colleague in Port Harcourt, the United States Department of States yesterday again warned its citizens to avoid the volatile Niger-Delta due to renewed militacy in the region.

01/25/2007

Lagos — Barely 48 hours after five Chinese citizens who were abducted on January 5, by Niger Delta militants, but were released last week, arrived their country home, three other Chinese nationals were kidnapped during a raid yesterday on Chinese National Petroleum Company (CNPC), located in Sagbama, Bayelsa State. The gangsters also ransacked the company's accounts office and carted away large sums of money. One of the gunmen was however reportedly killed during a shoot -out with security opeatives attached to the company, while scores of persons sustained injuries.

01/23/2007

Warri — MOVEMENT for Emancipation of the Niger-Delta (MEND) has thrown light on why it kidnapped 24 hostages and seized a cargo ship, last Saturday, in Delta State, saying that it was because the Federal Government was threatening to deal with the freedom fighters instead of acceding to their request to release the former governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha and the symbol of the Ijaw struggle, Alhaji M. Asari-Dokubo. In an e-mail message to Vanguard, signed by the Tamuno Godwill and Onyiye Alaebi, the group said that after it it took some Italians and one Lebanese Agip workers as hostages in Bayelsa State, demanding the immediate release of the former governor of Bayelsa State Chief DSP Alamieyeseigha and freedom fighter, Alhaji Asari Dokubo from prison by the federal government of Nigeria, "the federal government of Nigeria has not taken any meaningful step on the demands, rather threatening to deal with other freedom fighters in the Niger Delta". "To this end, MEND has further held a cargo ship with 24 foreigners on board on the 20th of January 2007 at 09.15 hour.

01/23/2007

Port Harcourt — The spate of hostage taking in Rivers State took a new dimension yesterday morning when two Americans were kidnapped by unknown gun men near the Rivers State University of Science and Technology, (RSUST) while on their way to work.

01/22/2007

Nairobi — There is an African war the world at large pays little attention. Plausibly that's because it remains an internal affair. Well, so was, once, Darfur, Somalia ad infinitum. This war is in the Niger Delta. The British once called it Oil Rivers and gave it a grand title: British Oil Rivers Protectorate. There was plenty of palm oil, a precious commodity then.

01/22/2007

Warri — MOVEMENT for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), which hijacked a cargo ship, weekend, in Warri and took 24 Phillipines hostage, reiterated, yesterday, that the kidnapped foreign nationals would be killed tomorrow if at the expiration of its 72 hour ultimatum to the Federal Government, its demands were not met.

01/22/2007

Warri — Secretary to the Delta State Government (SSG), Chief Ovie Omo-Agege, has relocated to Warri, following the abduction on Saturday night of seven foreign oil workers by some Niger-Delta militants. The decision to relocate to Warri, THISDAY gathered from an authoritative government source last night, "is to facilitate the speedy release of the hostages."

01/22/2007

Lagos — PRESIDENT Gloria Arroyo of Philippine has barred Philipinos from accepting job offers in Nigeria until six sea men abducted in Nigeria last weekend were released. The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) in another daring raid last Saturday successfully abducted 70 foreigners after attacking a cargo ship destined for the Warri Port, Delta State.

01/21/2007

Warri — THE Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger-Delta, MEND yesterday, hijacked a cargo ship and took about 24 foreign nationals on board hostage at the Chanomi Creeks in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State.

01/20/2007

Lagos — THE Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger-Delta (MEND) threatened yesterday to take at will "as many hostages" as it wanted, saying there was nothing the authorities could do to stop it. "We will take as many hostages as we wish, when we wish and there is clearly nothing the Nigerian government can do," a spokesman for the Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND) said in an e_mail.