Nigeria's oil production has been halved by attacks on oil pipelines in the oil-rich Niger Delta region. Recent attacks on oil facilities owned by Shell, Agip and Chevron have been blamed on a newly established militant group, the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA), which vowed it would completely halt Nigeria's oil production unless the government meets the group's demands.
NDA is the latest militant organisation to wage war against Nigeria due to perceived marginalisation in the Niger Delta. Earlier this year, attacks blamed on NDA partially halted oil production and forced Chevron and Royal Dutch Shell to close two plants following attacks linked to the group.
On 27 May, the group took to Twitter to claim responsibility for an attack at "Nembe 1, 2 and 3 Brass to Bonny Trunk Line belonging to Agip and Shell." In another Tweet, the group warned that "something big" was about to happen.
Military presence in the area has increased following attacks. President Muhammadu Buhari has accused the NDA of vandalism and warned that the Nigerian government would deal with the group in the same way it is tackling Boko Haram terrorists in the country's north-east region.
British Foreign Minister Philip Hammond, however, said Buhari needed to address the underlying causes of the conflict, amid fears a military confrontation could end in "disaster".
Niger Delta community leader Udengs Eradiri warned violence was likely to escalate unless the government "changes its body language", Reuters reported. Eradiri blamed Buhari for his decision to cut funding for a 2009 amnesty that offered militants money and a job training if they stopped attacks by two-thirds.
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