Nigeria rebel group to resume attacks, ends talks

YENAGOA, Nigeria (Reuters) – Nigeria’s main rebel group said on Saturday it would resume attacks against Africa’s biggest energy industry next month, overshadowing the surrender of hundreds of arms by rebels in a federal amnesty program.

The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), responsible for attacks that have wrought havoc on the OPEC member’s oil operations, said it would resume its campaign of violence on September 15.

MEND, a loose coalition of militant groups, denounced the hundreds of rebels that have participated in President Umaru Yar’Adua’s 60-day amnesty program, which aims to stem unrest in the Niger Delta.

“The ongoing amnesty program by the government of Nigeria seems to have achieved separating those who still have the zeal to fight for our freedom from those who were in it for the money,” the group said in a statement.

MEND, which declared a 60-day ceasefire in July to allow for peace talks, said it has suspended negotiations with the government.

Reuters