Nigerian forces free 3 European captives |
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Published
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Mon, 12 Mar 2007 18:39
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PORT HARCOURT, Nigeria (AP) - Security forces freed three European hostages in Nigeria's restive oil region Monday, officials said.The two Croatians and one Montenegrin seized Feb. 18 in Port Harcourt were in good health after the rescue by a joint task force of police, navy and army personnel, said navy spokesman Maj. Sahir Musa.'There was no serious resistance from the militants, and no one was hurt,' he said.Croatian Foreign Ministry Zeljko Belaj said the freed hostages would go home after routine medical examinations.Scores of foreign workers have been seized in the Niger delta since the beginning of the year. Hostages are generally released unharmed after a cash payment, although casualties have occurred when kidnappers encounter government forces that patrol the vast region of swamps and creeks.In a separate incident Monday, two naval police were shot dead during a robbery on a boat used by a major oil and gas company, employees said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. Musa confirmed the incident but declined to give details.More than a year of attacks on a maze of oil infrastructure and the workers servicing it have cut Nigeria's daily output by nearly a quarter, helping to push crude prices to record highs in international markets.Despite generating tens of billions of dollars in oil revenue every year, most of the region's people are mired in deep poverty and abductions for ransom have become common.Nigeria is Africa's largest oil exporter and the fifth-largest supplier of crude to the United States.Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Foreign workers taken hostage in Nigeria 