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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Nigerians 'to release UK hostage' | Nigerians 'to release UK hostage' |
| (21 minutes later) | |
| Nigerian militants say they will release Matthew Maguire, a British hostage held in the southern oil swamps for almost nine months. | Nigerian militants say they will release Matthew Maguire, a British hostage held in the southern oil swamps for almost nine months. |
| An e-mail from the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (Mend) said Mr Maguire would be freed because 1 June is his birthday. | An e-mail from the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (Mend) said Mr Maguire would be freed because 1 June is his birthday. |
| Mr Maguire was one of 27 hostages taken from an oil services boat in September - all the other hostages were released. | Mr Maguire was one of 27 hostages taken from an oil services boat in September - all the other hostages were released. |
| There has been fighting in recent weeks between Mend and the army. | |
| This has mostly been in Delta State, while it is believed that Mr Maguire is being held in Rivers State. | This has mostly been in Delta State, while it is believed that Mr Maguire is being held in Rivers State. |
| "Today, June 1 is Mathew Maguire's birthday. He has spent close to 9 months in captivity and we hope to release him today as his gift," Mend said in a statement from their pseudonymous spokesman Jomo Gbomo. | |
| They warned the military not to try and attack them in an attempt to rescue Mr Maguire. | |
| British hostage Robin Hughes, taken from the same boat as Mr Maguire, was released in April because he had fallen sick. | British hostage Robin Hughes, taken from the same boat as Mr Maguire, was released in April because he had fallen sick. |
| Kidnap industry | |
| They were seized by a group of pirates operating in Nigeria's oil coast, who then handed them over to Mend. | |
| The other hostages were released within days. Mend had said they would hold on to the pair until Mend leader Henry Okah, currently facing the death penalty at a treason trial being held in secret, was released by the government. | |
| Hundreds of foreign oil and construction workers - and many more Nigerians - have been kidnapped by militants since 2006. | |
| Militants who say they are fighting for a better deal from Nigeria's oil revenue, fund their groups with kidnapping, extortion and oil theft. | |
| Corruption and poor governance in the region has allowed militant groups to flourish, activists say. |