Hostage: Mend friend attacks tanker
Romanian taken in tanker attack
Gunmen in speedboats used dynamite to attack a tanker loaded with 4,000 metric tonnes of diesel off Nigeria today, kidnapping a Romanian crew member and badly damaging the vessel, the military said.
The MT Meredith was attacked at the Bonny Fairway Buoy in the Niger Delta as it traveled from Lagos to Port Harcourt, military spokesman Sagir Musa said.
"Part of the vessel was damaged by the dynamite used by the gunmen, which left the vessel crippled," Musa said, adding that the Nigerian navy had arrived at the scene.
The ship was carrying the fuel on behalf of one of Nigeria's biggest locally owned oil and gas-services company, the Associated Press said.
Mend said one of its affiliate groups had carried out the attack, according to a Reuters report.
"This recent attack should send a clear message to the oil companies that even with the four Mantra-class seaward defence boats and two Augusta helicopters acquired by the navy, the only thing that can stop attacks is justice," the group said.
"Mend is in touch with the group and will ensure the abducted man is released unharmed at the earliest convenience," it said in an email.
Musa said it was the eighth such attack in the waters of the Niger Delta since the start of the year. He said intelligence reports suggested local staff on oil services vessels were collaborating with the pirates by revealing their travel plans.
He said the attacks had targeted vessels which were not accompanied by navy gunboats and urged oil services firms to talk with the military when planning their movements.
Violence in the Niger Delta has cut Nigeria's oil output by 20% in recent years.