Oil kidnappers target children
Two children aged five and six have become the latest kidnap victims of oil company ransom gangs in Nigeria.
French oil giant Total said today that the children of one of its Nigerian employees were abducted yesterday on their way to school in Port Harcourt.
A company spokeswoman said it was the first time children of Total employees had been targeted in country’s recent string of kidnappings of oil workers.
She said the company had reinforced security for its staff in the city and that all families of expatriate employees had already been sent out of Port Harcourt.
Around 100 foreign workers have been kidnapped this year amid disputes between oil companies and communities demanding a greater share of the wealth in Africa’s largest crude producer.
The region remains desperately poor despite its great natural resources.
Seven oil workers who were kidnapped from an offshore oil field in the Niger Delta were released yesterday after two days in captivity.
The three foreigners and four Nigerians were seized on Saturday after gunmen in more than 30 speedboats attacked a field operated by Royal Dutch Shell.
It was the first major attack since the president began a peace process in the region five months ago.
