Oil hostages freed in Nigeria
The men were kidnapped in residential quarters on October 3rd
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Saturday, 21, Oct 2006 06:10
Seven men held captive by gunmen in Nigeria's oil-rich delta region for the past 18 days have today been freed unharmed.
The oil workers, which include four Britons, one Romanian, one Malaysian and one Indonesian, were kidnapped in the energy giant Exxon Mobil's residential area in Eket on October 3rd.
Several Nigerian security guards were killed in the original raid, with the government and associated companies thought to have negotiated a financial settlement for the men's safe release.
The four British workers are Paul Smith, 30, of Peterhead, Graham Mclean, 43, of Elgin, Sandy Cruden and Graeme Buchan, both of Inverurie.
Malcolm Wilson, chief executive of Aberdeen-based Sparrows Offshore, for which three of the men work, said he was delighted the "intensive efforts by the [Nigerian] government and companies involved" had paid off.
"We have spoken to the men and they are in good spirits, but we have arranged medical checks as a routine precaution before they fly back to the UK," he said.
"These have been difficult days for the men themselves and for their families, and I would like to pay tribute to the great strength they have shown.
"Sparrows Offshore will not be discussing any of the communications which passed between government officials and the group which took our men," Mr Wilson added.
The volatile Niger delta region has been the scene of many kidnappings within the past ten years, with armed militia demanding that oil wealth be distributed among the country's poor.
Unrest in Nigeria was one of the key reasons behind oil prices surging during the last 12 months to fears over supplies.