Oil down below $69 in European trade on demand fears, amnesty in Nigeria for rebels

October 10th, 2009 Nigeria oil tanker truck explosion kills 14ABUJA, Nigeria — A Nigerian official says at least 14 people died when a petroleum tanker truck exploded and set nine other vehicles alight on a road in southeastern Nigeria. Nigeria Road Safety Commission spokesman Ben Ekenna says 12 bodies were badly burned and five people were injured in the blast in Anambra state on Friday.

October 4th, 2009 Nigerian militant leader accepts amnesty offerABUJA, Nigeria — A rebel leader in Nigeria's oil-rich Delta said he has accepted a government amnesty offer to disarm. Farah Dagogo, a former commander of the country's main militant group, said that he and other field commanders in Rivers state have surrendered all of their weapons.

September 24th, 2009 Nigeria says truce with delta militants holdingUNITED NATIONS — A two-month-old truce in Nigeria's oil-rich southern Delta region is holding and the militants have accepted an amnesty offer, according to Nigeria's Foreign Minister Ojo Maduekwe. The unrest has cut Nigeria's oil production by a million barrels a day, allowing Angola to overtake it as Africa's top oil producer.

September 16th, 2009 Nigeria militants extend truce by 1 monthABUJA, Nigeria — Nigerian militants announced Wednesday they will extend a cease-fire that expired overnight by one month, holding off on attacks on oil installations and kidnapping foreigners, but warned that the government must address the group's grievances. The militants are pressing the government to send federal oil revenues to the impoverished southern Delta region where the oil comes from, and they want the government to withdraw troops and help people return to homes they had fled.

September 16th, 2009 Nigeria militants extend truce by a monthABUJA, Nigeria — Militants in Nigeria say they are extending a cease-fire that expired overnight by one month, but warn they will resume attacks if the root causes of the conflict are not addressed. The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta called a two-month halt to their campaign of attacking oil installations and kidnapping foreigners in July, saying they hoped the truce would help facilitate talks with the government.

August 22nd, 2009 Govt: Nigeria militant to give up rockets, gunboatYENAGOA, Nigeria — A top militant commander in Nigeria's oil-rich Delta region will surrender rocket launchers and gunboats Saturday in the biggest hand-over of weapons since a government amnesty began two weeks ago, a government official said. Timiebi Koripamo-Agary, a spokeswoman for the government's 60-day campaign said commander Ebikabowei "Boyloaf" Victor Ben will surrender along with many of his fighters but could not give exact figures.

August 12th, 2009 Clinton presses Nigeria on graftABUJA, Nigeria — U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Wednesday urged oil-rich Nigeria to embrace broad political reform and ease tensions that have led to sectarian violence and disrupted energy production in the Niger Delta.

August 6th, 2009 Correction: Nigeria-Oil Unrest StoryABUJA, Nigeria — In an Aug. 5 story about Nigeria's amnesty program for militants, The Associated Press erroneously reported that the program began Wednesday, Aug.

August 6th, 2009 Nigeria begins 2-month amnesty for oil militantsABUJA, Nigeria — Nigeria began a 60-day amnesty Thursday for militants fighting in the country's oil-rich Delta region, a government official said, but the main militant group said it would not participate. Security agencies estimate there are 8,000 to 11,000 fighters in the creeks but it is not clear how many will disarm, said Timiebi Koripamo-Agari, a spokeswoman for the government amnesty committee.

August 5th, 2009 Nigeria's amnesty program begins in restive southABUJA, Nigeria — Nigeria's government says a program to offer amnesty to militants in the country's restive southern oil region has begun. The program, first announced in June, formally got under way Wednesday.

July 31st, 2009 LAGOS - At least 600 people were killed in clashes this week between the security forces and Islamist militants in Nigeria, the police said. The Nigerian Army said the battle against the militants will continue till the rebels are defeated.

July 15th, 2009 Nigeria oil militants call 60-day cease-fireABUJA, Nigeria — Nigeria's main militant group says it is calling a 60-day cease-fire immediately in response to the release of an ailing rebel leader. Henry Okah was freed Monday just hours after the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta set fire to an oil depot and loading tankers in the country's economic center, Lagos.

July 13th, 2009 Nigerian rebel leader released from jailABUJA, Nigeria — Nigeria's government freed a prominent rebel leader from jail Monday, his lawyer said, meeting a demand by insurgents who have been attacking the country's oil installations and kidnapping oil workers. But it was unclear what had motivated the government to make the concession because the Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta, or MEND, rebels have said that Henry Okah's release would not lead them to end their attacks in Africa's top oil producing nation.

June 21st, 2009 Nigeria militants claim attack 2 Shell pipelinesABUJA, Nigeria — Militants in Nigeria say they have attacked two pipelines belonging to oil giant Royal Dutch Shell. The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta says the pipelines were targeted by militant fighters before dawn on Sunday.

April 29th, 2009 Canadian woman kidnapped in Nigeria freedLAGOS, Nigeria — Police in Nigeria say a Canadian woman kidnapped this month in northern Nigeria has been released unharmed. National police spokesman Emmanuel Ojukwu says the woman was freed Wednesday in the northern city of Kaduna and no ransom was paid.