Africa Notes: Alienation and Militancy in Nigeria's Niger Delta - May 2003

On March 16, Royal Dutch Shell, Nigeria’s biggest oil producer, evacuated nonessential staff from its facilities in the Warri district of southern Nigeria’s Delta region. This abrupt decision followed a month of mounting unrest by ethnic Ijaw militants that culminated in an attack on the Nigerian Navy on the Escravos River and left seven people dead, wounded several soldiers, and significantly disrupted riverine travel.