FOUR EXPAT AGIP EMPLOYEES KIDNAPPED; NO AMERICANS

UNCLAS LAGOS 001408 SIPDIS C O R R E C T E D COPY - CLASSIFICATION (SBU) SIPDIS DOE FOR GPERSON, CGAY TREASURY FOR ASEVERENS, SRENENDER, DFIELDS COMMERCE FOR KBURRESS STATE PASS USTR FOR ASST USTR SLISER STATE PASS TRANSPORTATION FOR MARAD STATE PASS OPIC FOR ZHAN AND MSTUCKART STATE PASS TDA FOR NCABOT STATE PASS EXIM FOR JRICHTER STATE PASS USAID FOR GWEYNAND AND SLAWAETZ E.O. 12958: DECL: N/A TAGS: EPET ENERG ASEC PTER NI SUBJECT: FOUR EXPAT AGIP EMPLOYEES KIDNAPPED; NO AMERICANS INVOLVED ¶1. (SBU) According to Fidelis Anju, General Manager for Public Affairs, Agip Oil Company, three Italian and one Lebanese Agip employees were taken hostage during an early morning attack on a residential facility near the Agip Brass tank farm. According to the Agip spokesman, no Americans were involved in the attack, which occurred between 6:30 and 7:00 AM on December 7. Agip believes that, although the attack occurred near the Twon Brass community, the local community did not participate in the attack. The attackers split into two groups, one approaching a small security post on one side of the creek and another the residential compound directly opposite, Anju said. Following an exchange of gunfire, the attackers departed with the hostages. An online news source reported that one Nigerian was killed in the exchange, and that the attack involved seven boats. ¶2. (U) Operations at the Brass tank farm and other operations at the facility were unaffected. The tank farm takes in 200,000 barrels per day of petroleum from the fields and offloads approximately 1 million barrels onto ships for export every three to four days, the Agip spokesman said. BROWNE