Posted by By DULUE MBACHU, Associated Press Writer on
A man who identified himself an American kidnapped by militants in Nigeria's oil-rich southern delta last month said Tuesday he had been separated from two other hostages and feared for his life.
A man who identified himself an American kidnapped by militants in Nigeria's oil-rich southern delta last month said Tuesday he had been separated from two other hostages and feared for his life.
During a telephone call with The Associated Press, militants of the Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta passed the phone to the man, who identified himself as Cody Oswald.
Militants have been holding Oswald and two others - American Russell Spell and Briton John Hudspith - since a Feb. 18 raid on an oil industry barge. It was unclear why the hostages were split up.
He said he was separated from the other two on Saturday. "Since then I've not seen them, and I really fear for my life. Something needs to happen to see that their demands are met," he added, before the phone was apparently taken from him.
The militants group claims to be fighting to win a greater share of oil wealth on behalf of the Niger Delta's impoverished inhabitants, who have remained poor despite the fact that most of Nigeria's oil is being pumped from the swampy region. The government calls the militants criminals and oil thieves.
A militant spokesman who initiated the call reiterated their demands for the release of jailed ethnic Ijaw leaders and the payment by Royal Dutch Shell of a $1.5 billion compensation to Ijaw communities for oil pollution, also demanded by Nigerian lawmakers, in exchange for the hostages.
Foreign oil workers are frequently taken hostage in Nigeria, and most are released unharmed.
The militants took nine foreign oil workers hostage Feb. 18 from a barge owned by Houston-based oil services company Willbros Group Inc. They have released six of them.
A wave of militant attacks over the last two months has forced Nigeria to cut daily exports by 20 percent. Nigeria normally exports about 2.5 million barrels per day and is the fifth-biggest source of U.S. oil imports.
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Associated Press writer Osmond Chidi contributed to this report from Warri, Nigeria