Nigeria militants say clash with army in oil delta
Thu Jun 10, 2010 10:35am GMT

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LAGOS (Reuters) - Nigeria's main militant group said its fighters clashed with soldiers in the creeks of Delta state in the oil-producing Niger Delta on Thursday, the first report of such unrest in the OPEC member nation in months.

"There was a bloody confrontation at about 0030 hours, between our fighters and men of the military Joint Task Force after one of our patrols ran into two gunboats of the JTF at Ogulagha in Delta state," the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) said in a statement emailed to media.

"A firefight ensued which lasted about 30 minutes," it said.

It was not immediately possible to get comment from the military or any independent confirmation of a firefight.