Eric Watkins
Senior Correspondent
LOS ANGELES, June 8 -- A militant group in the Niger Delta on June 7 attacked an oil rig, seizing five South Korean oil workers and killing five Nigerian soldiers.
The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) claimed responsibility for destroying the rig, a naval houseboat, and a military gunship in addition to the killings and kidnappings. Details on the rig involved were not immediately available.
The group's key demand is the release of militia leader, Mujahid Dokubo-Asari, in jail without bond on treason charges.
The attack came as South Korean officials visited Nigerian Petroleum Minister Edmund Daukoru on June 6 regarding South Korea's wish to operate Nigerian oil fields.
The incident marked the second recent oil-related hostage situation for Nigeria. Earlier this month, a different group kidnapped eight foreign oil workers and then released them 4 days later (OGJ Online, June 2, 2006).
Contact Eric Watkins at [email protected].
