According to
press reports, and Raw Story, this evening, "More than 100 armed militants on Thursday stormed a US-operated oil platform in Nigeria, the world's eighth largest exporter, in response to the arrest of a militia leader.
Armed with assault rifles, fighters in speed boats invaded the Idama platform operated by Chevron in the southern Niger Delta, while in the capital a judge ordered Mujahid Dokubo-Asari to be held in jail for two weeks pending treason charges.
...
Oil prices are at near record highs due to hurricane damage in southern United States, and any disruption to exports of high quality crude from Nigeria, its fifth-largest supplier, would stretch supplies further."
More below...
The timing for this could not have been worse, considering Katrina, and now Rita. It's important enough, that WaPo has already
picked up on the story. AS they note, "Nigeria is the fifth largest exporter of oil to the United States."
The violence in response to the arrest of a rebel leader, and the militants are promising to continue to attack facilities, and to even blow them up.
In fact, Reuters is reporting that several facilities in the Niger delta have been overrun: "'This morning we took over two flow stations belonging to Chevron and one belonging to Shell,' the NDPVF's number two Alali Horsefall told IRIN. 'And we are going to take more.'"
Personally, I'm concerned not just about what these attacks, in combination with lingering affects from Katrina, and the arrival Rita, and the affect it will all have on oil prices and our (and the World) economy, but what affect will these attacks have on the Bush Administration? Will Cheney and Rumsfeld start drawing up invasion plans for Nigeria in order to secure the oil?
This may sound snarky, but I wouldn't past those guys... Anyway, get ready to pay big bucks at the pump!