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Wednesday, 07 January, 2009, 21:10 GMT | more >>

Nigeria rebels extend olive branch



By Upstream staff 

A group of rebels and activists from the Niger Delta have agreed to resume peace talks with the government, but a faction behind most attacks stayed out of the process.

Rebel commander Government Ekpemupolo was among those who said they would resume talks. He had formally withdrawn from the process in December, according to Reuters.

"(We) have agreed to return to the talks with the federal government for the implementation of the road map towards peace in the Niger Delta," the militants said in a statement after a two-day meeting in the Delta state.

However, the absence of a key faction of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), which has claimed responsibility for most serious attacks on oil facilities in recent months, means violence is likely to continue.

MEND has claimed responsibility for last Saturday's raid on a navy outpost that killed three soldiers, a remote controlled bombing of an oil tanker in January, and dozens of other attacks.

In their statement on Wednesday, Ekpemupolo's group condemned Saturday's attack.


Wednesday, 06 February, 2008, 17:10 GMT  | last updated: Wednesday, 06 February, 2008, 18:50 GMT

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