Agip oil facility in the Niger Delta attacked

The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has claimed responsibility for attacking an Agip oil facility in the Niger Delta. The group sent an email to Nigeria's media saying its members were responsible for the attack on the Clough Creek oil station and warned of more hits on oil and gas facilities.

The statement read: "This attack and similar attacks on pipelines and flow stations which will take place in the coming days are a reminder to the Nigerian government and general public not to take our threats for granted.”

A spokesman for the joint military task force in the Niger Delta, Lt Col Timothy Antigha, said there were no casualties. He described the incident as “isolated” and said that MEND had nothing to do with it, adding: “We suspect a certain criminal called Gen. Passman to be the mastermind. Passman had threatened two weeks ago to attack the Agip facility if he was not given money.”

Clough Creek oil station was subject to militant strikes three years ago, and is currently being repaired.

Sources: Reuters, The Nigerian Observer, Afrique en Ligne

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