Two Germans arrested after trip to Niger Delta 01/10/2007 00:00

1 October 2007

Abuja/Nairobi (dpa) - Nigerian security officials arrested two Germans and one American when they were allegedly illegally filming and interviewing people in the volatile Niger Delta, local media reported Friday.

The Nigerian daily, This Day, reported that Florian Alexander Opitz and Andy Lehmann were arrested last week in the delta along with Judith Burdin Asuni, an American married to a Nigerian who runs a non-governmental organisation in the country.

"From watching and analysing the tape seized from the two men, security sources said the people were on espionage mission with the intent to embarrass Nigeria and rupture her national interest," wrote the paper.

The newspaper said they arrived September 8 and made no contact with the German embassy before meeting with Asuni and heading to the delta.

Foreigners have come under threat in the last two years from militants in the Niger Delta who seek a greater say in the wealth of the oil-rich region and have waged a violent campaign against oil companies that has seen some 200 expatriates kidnapped.

The government of former President Olusegun Obasanjo was strict about the media coverage the region received, engaging in a war of words with American news outlet CNN over a report on the militancy.

DPA

Subject: German news