afrol News, 1 September - Nigerian military has refuted claims of clashes between government forces and country's most prominent rebel group, in contested oil rich Niger Delta region on Saturday.

Army spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Rabe Abubakar said no fighting involving army forces and members of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) occurred over the weekend.

For its part, MEND says some 29 government soldiers and six of its members were killed in three separate attacks against national army last Saturday.

Group's spokesman Jomo Gbomo maintained that attacks took place on military positions deep in mangrove creeks of Niger Delta in Rivers, Bayelsa and Delta States.

"Journalists should visit locations mentioned above as soon as possible to witness wreck of gunboats which were still burning when we left, to forestall any denial by military," Gbomo said in an e-mail message to media.

It claimed to have used grenade launchers and Soviet-era anti-tank missiles in attacks, which it said, had left six of its members dead. Claim could however not be immediately verified.

Lt Col Abubakar denied the claim as " dubious and sordid propaganda", adding that such attacks had not taken place.

But if true, it would be the highest death toll in a single day in a conflict that has escalated in recent months. Mend came to prominence in 2006, when it started its incessant kidnapping campaigns.

Since key MEND leader Henry Okah was arrested in February last year, group has made several claims, which turned out to be untrue.

In March, it falsely claimed Mr Okah had been shot dead while in custody. It also claimed that former US President Jimmy Carter had agreed to mediate a peace deal when he had not.

But last month Mend reportedly orchestrated release of two German hostages held by another militant group, a change in tactics that activists called "encouraging".

Rebel group says it is fighting for a better deal for people of oil-rich region. However, reports show that billions of dollars have been given to states in Niger Delta by Federal Government, with very little development to show for it.

Violence in the region is rooted in poverty, corruption and lawlessness. Most inhabitants have seen few benefits from five decades of oil extraction that has damaged their environment.

Thousands of foreign oil workers have left in past two years as violence has spiraled, and some industry executives see situation descending further into lawlessness.

Since beginning of 2006, attacks by militants in Delta region have cut by 20 percent oil production in Nigeria, Africa's biggest crude producer and eighth largest world exporter.

By staff writer

© afrol News

Related pages and feature

Current afrol News Top Stories