Peter Odili Started all this mess. He must be brought to book. They used these criminals to get to power and to fight opposition. President yaradua must not put his face in the sand like an ostrich. Get these former Niger delta governors and end this nonsense once and for all.

POINT !!!

O boy, God bless you! You really know the problem. The fact is that, if things must be calm, then former governors of the Niger Delta must be brought to book - especially PETER ODILI. Otherwise, things go worsen ooo.

Some people seem not to understand the situation in PH. Meen, it is very bad ooo. In fact, I want to go sef. I heard that there is curfew from 6pm

I see you guys tomorrow.
PAJOJO

My brothers and sisters living in Port Harcourtl et's not just complain, let's put the situation in prayer and i know God will answer in Jesus' name. I commit that situation into the hands of God, your bones will not be broken and your blood will not be spilled in the mighty name of Jesus. I speak PEACE to those areas now in the name of Jesus, and every force whether physical or spiritual behind these crisis, i cancel their evil plans in Jesus' name. Amen.

leave PH ALONE,what about MASSOB?is not interesting enough to talk about.

you think we talk about PH cos it's "interesting"?

Is it possible that this could be an attempt to divert President Yaradua and the whole of Nigeria's attention from fighting corruption. May be if everyone is pre-occupied dislodging Militants EFCC will not remember to probe ex-Goverors from South-South.

Soboma George has been an employee of Rivers State Government. In fact his team assasinated Prince Igodo for attempting to disrupt Omehia's innauguration, he is also an upland commander of MEND.

So why he has gone Haywire leaves more questions than answers, I hope the crisis in PH is not diversionary.

maybe.

it hasnt always been like dat o. . .
i hear its hell now gosh. . .

thank God skool children are on hols

[b]I don't  why people don't like to say things the way they are, for all of you  in this forum, you have to understand how the PH problem stands before we can start wondering when it will end. Saboma George has been killed, this is a 27 year old cult leader that was always boosting of killing Harry Marshall, He was hired by Odili on behalf of  Obasanjo for the sake of 3rd term to commit this Murder.He has  about 200 followers and all of them are armed. There is also Ateke Tom who has his men and  another cult group which was formed the last speaker of the house to win elections but did not succeed.
  some member of these cult groups were being paid 3million Niara each by Odili and they went on to the street last week because Omehia has refused to continue paying this money.Ibori hisred Militant to kidnap Willbros staff in order to get them to sell the company to him which he ended up buying for $150million.
 Please the problem will not end . Oil bunkering is being use to exchange for guns when the tankers come in , so no way to control guns.
Long Live our people[/b]

All this talk talk wey una dey talk, no bi the solution.
Me, i know PORT HARCOURT AND NIGER DELTA well well.
wetin dey happen for PORT HARCOURT today, na because of CURSE.
IBO CURSE PORT HARCOURT, sey na only KATAKATA ,e go dey see.
That is why i dey beg IBO PEOPLE , please make una come remove this CURSE.
So that we fit see peace.
    That is the only solution to this problem

willywilly

u and curse hmmm may they not curse u for all this talk wey you de talk here amen o!

dimka

is it until our children begin to look like this dat u know it may belike biafra?

Well,we are at crossroads! They armed jobless youths ab initio to 'carry go',now see where we find ourselves.Looks like more problems are yet to come b4 the solution to all this will be worked out by this senseless power hijackers.

Epoma

Soboma George is not less than 30, Ignore the age quoted by Vanguard. I grew up in Borikiri area and I know Soboma George. Marshal Harry's death had nothing to do with 3rd term as Marshal Harry was actually killed in the run up to 2003 elections.

@Carlosein,
Carlosein, u see all those small small pickin, wee u see for that picture, na injustice make dem dey like that.
e bi like sey, na why those small pickin CURSE PORT HARCOURT,

dimka:

it is not as bad as biafra war. .MSSAOB is just like MEND.

It seems this dimka character can't read the topic "Fresh Gun Battle In Port Harcourt".

He or she or it has been posting unrelated baseless news about alleged MASSOB activities in Onitsha. Why? Could it be that he/she/it can't stand the truth that the activities of some cowardly, misguided, ignorant, and damned youths of the Niger Delta is ruining the facade of the Garden City? Could it be that he/she/it is uncomfortable with this 21st century barbarism from some misguided elements in the Niger Delta?

@dimka, please address the issue on this thread and stop the distractive posts.

Top Militant, George, 31 Others Killed

Daily Champion (Lagos)
NEWS
17 August 2007
Posted to the web 17 August 2007

By Tony Ita Etim
Port Harcourt

Leader of one of the cult groups that have unleashed violence on the people of Rivers State, Soboma George was among 32 people killed yesterday in a fierce confrontation between the cultists and government troops.

Most of the deceased, Daily Champion learnt, were cultists loyal to George who engaged operatives of the Joint Military Task Force (JTF) in a gun battle.

The early morning offensive which jolted residents of Port Harcourt, the state capital and environs, was a combined operation of men and officers of the Army and the Air Force.

George's strong hold was bombarded by helicopter gunships.

Said our source: "The military had to necessarily cordon off some portions of the city, in order to put the cultists in proper view as targets. This was done in order to minimize civilian casualties and to avoid any destruction of property. In all, and by the last count, 32 people are feared to have died - most of them cultists."

The aerial bombing of Soboma George's enclave yielded the desired result because his ill-equipped and rag tag armed cultists were no match to the Nigerian soldiers and were easily smoked out and those that laid down their arms were arrested and taken into custody. But Soboma was feared dead. And residents of Port Harcourt are giving the military all the necessary support and cooperation as they continue to hail the successful military operations. The military has vowed to stay in the city, until all cultists are flushed out."

Soboma, a former ally of Ateke Tom, leader of the Niger Delta Vigilante Force was declared wanted in 2005 after he escaped from the Port Harcourt prison during the June 17, 2005 jailbreak.

Early this year Soboma was arrested for a minor traffic offence and detained at the Rivers State Criminal Investigation Bureau where his comrades-in-arms stormed the station and after about four hours of gun battle freed him and other detainees in the cell.When contacted the spokesman for the JTF and Public Relations Officer of the 2nd Amphibious Brigade, Bori Camp, Port Harcourt, Major Sagir Musa told our correspondent on phone "We suspect that Soboma George was killed."

According to him, in their search for hoodlums who caused violence in Port Harcourt last week, soldiers cordoned off an area where Soboma was living and in the process some hoodlums shot at them [soldiers] and they retaliated and also burnt the house were the cult leader was hiding.

Musa said that the killing of Soboma infuriated his followers who took to the streets of the Town area of the city shooting sporadically but men from the JTF contained the situation.

During the operation he said about 20 hoodlums were arrested while no soldier was killed or injured.

The ITF had Tusaday bombed Ateke Tom and Soboma George, For the violence in Port Harcourt alleging that the duo were struggling for territorial control of the illegal bunkering business in the city.

Soboma and Ateke, Musa continued took their struggle to the streets of Port Harcourt killing and maiming innocents citizens as well as destroyed public property.

However the clash between the soldiers and suspected cultists caused panic in the town area as residents remained indoors throughout while business houses were closed.

The panic was not restricted to the area as military helicopters that hovered around the city caused apprehension among residents who fled the streets of Port Harcourt for the safety of their homes and offices.

In areas like Diobu and other hotbeds human and vehicular movements were scanty as residents anticipated a repeat of last week gun battle and a fierce confrontation between hoodlums and security forces.

Banks along Ikwerre road and its environs sent their staff home before 4pm while other business promised were locked up as people retired to their homes for safety.

Residents Flee Heavy Fighting in Niger Delta's Main City

UN Integrated Regional Information Networks
NEWS
17 August 2007
Posted to the web 17 August 2007
Port Harcourt

People are fleeing Nigeria's main oil city of Port Harcourt amid heavy fighting between government troops and armed gangs, residents and officials told IRIN on Friday.

"The whole thing appears to be completely out of hand," said Opuka Ibieye, a resident of Port Harcourt, a 2 million strong city in the south of the country, who said he was fleeing the city with his family.

"We have no choice but to leave this city as it is not safe any more."

Fighting broke out in the early hours of Thursday after the military launched an attack in the Makoba district of the city on what was believed to be a hideout of top militia leader, Soboma George, known often simply as George.

"We were lucky we got information on the hideout of Soboma George and we went to attack it and cordon it off," said Maj. Sagir Musa, spokesman of the joint military task force in charge of security in the volatile Niger Delta oil region.

"In the process there was an exchange of fire between the militants and the troops."

Residents said the fighting then spread to other parts of the city, including Borokiri, Creek Road and Marine Base, with helicopter gunships flying overhead firing at what was supposed to be militia positions.

Armed militia fighters operating on motorbikes fought back with automatic weapons and dynamite.

People were also seen leaving the city with their belongings on Friday amid widespread fears the militia fighters had regrouped in creeks around Port Harcourt and were planning to launch a fresh offensive on the city during the weekend.

The Rivers State government, the seat of which is in Port Harcourt, said in a statement on Thursday night that at least 32 people had died in the fighting, most of them militia fighters, including the leader George.

But the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), the main militant group in the region which claims George as one its commanders, denied the claim. "George is alive and well," according to a statement emailed from MEND.

Background

The latest fighting is blamed on a recent upsurge of violence after troops were sent in to intervene following clashes between rival armed gangs in the city, apparently fighting for control of lucrative criminal rackets in guns, drugs and illegal oil deals.

Dozens of people have been killed in the city in the past two weeks. Reuters reported on 16 August that 71 gunshot victims have been admitted to a Port Harcourt trauma centre in the two weeks before.

Nearly two decades of unrest in the Niger Delta region have in recent years evolved into an armed insurgency for local control of the oil wealth. The Niger Delta produces nearly all the oil that is the mainstay of Nigeria's economy yet the region remains one of the poorest in the country.

Criminal gangs have grown increasingly powerful, thriving on rackets involving tapping of oil from the region's network of pipelines. The tapped oil is illegally sold to ships waiting offshore, often in exchange for guns.

[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations ]

Soboma, P-Harcourt Militant Chief, Shot Dead

Vanguard (Lagos)
NEWS
17 August 2007
Posted to the web 17 August 2007

By George Onah, Hector Igbikiowubo & Kingsley Omonobi
Port Harcourt

ONE of the two gang leaders behind last week's violence in Port Harcourt, Soboma George, was killed yesterday in a massive joint military operation to dislodge the gunmen who were terrorising the city.

Soboma, 27, until his death led the Outlaws, one of the over 100 groups operating in the state.

The JTF men stormed his hideout on Ibeto Street in the city following a tip-off. It was a move that caught Soboma and his men off guard. Expectedly, a gun battle ensured, but it was the JTF that carried the day. Ateke Tom, leader of the other group thought to be involved in the violence issued a statement denying his involvement.

Several other people were feared dead in the operation and at least 20 gang leaders arrested.

President Umaru Yar'Adua, Vanguard gathered yesterday, had ordered an investigation into the source(s) of arms inflow into the Niger Delta.

Consequently, certain individuals have been placed under surveillance while ships doing business in the region are to be closely monitored by the Navy.

Spokesman for the Army in Port Harcourt, Major Sagir Musa said: "We conducted a surprise attack at his (Soboma George) hideout. George is suspected to have been killed while 20 of his men were captured."

When pressed to confirm if George was dead, Sagir said: "Just take the information I just gave to you. We will give more details about the operation later. The operation will continue until sanity is restored to the entire city and it is ongoing."

Soboma George who was in detention at the "awaiting trial men" section of a prison, escaped two years ago and had since been involved in militant attacks in the region.

Vanguard gathered that a fierce battle ensued between his men and those of the JTF in the early hours of yesterday around Borokiri, Marine Base and Harbour Road axis of Port Harcourt.

As the battle for supremacy raged, residents of Creek Road, Marine Base and some waterfronts that make up the Borokiri area of the town fled and closed their offices and stores.

After the shoot-out subsided, residents of these areas were seen moving out in droves, while the army cordoned off the areas with Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs), forcing people to walk long distances with their arms raised.

Such scenes were witnessed at the Eastern by-pass where no vehicular movement was allowed.

Ateke Tom disowns P-Harcourt violence

However, Ateke Tom expressed shock yesterday that he had been associated with the ongoing orgy of violence in Port Harcourt, explaining that he had been far removed from the events of the past week having renounced violence in a well-attended ceremony in Okrika town.

Tom reiterated his earlier position that he had renounced violence as a way out of the crisis in the region and urged journalists to verify the information at their disposal before going to press.

He also issued a statement saying: "I don't have any involvement in the fighting that took place in Port Harcourt last week.

I spent close to N120,000,000.00 to make peace in my town Okrika which is evident in the present harmony that exists between the various factions that never agreed or sat together before now. If I could do this singlehandedly in Okrika without any assistance from government or chiefs, I think I don't have any moral or logical justification to institute a crisis of that magnitude in Port Harcourt no matter what.

"Those who are indicting me are the people who conspired to kill me. I am not surprised that they will make effective use of this opportunity to indict me, which may serve as a prelude to another state government sponsored JTF attack on me since I Ateke have become their common enemy. I wish to emphasize that I am for peace and I have been following the peace talks of the Federal Government in recent times," he said.

Vanguard observed that fighter helicopters, painted in military camouflage, threw bombs, with earth shaking vibrations, within and around areas surrounding the city centre, overlooking the creeks of Okrika and Marine Base and Borokiri area.

Rocket-propelled grenades (RPG) may have been employed by the ground troops too, as wild smoke accompanied ear piercing explosions, signalling the landing of bombs and the far away burst of rifle fire could be heard in the background.

As the shooting raged, residents made frantic phone calls to relations, friends and associates, telling those in the calm environment that their areas were under siege.

In the interim, movement was restricted to the city centre through the eastern bypass towards Marine Base axis. Scores of soldiers and their trucks cordoned off the link road joining Ogbunabali, Elekahia and Trans-Amadi Industrial Layout.

Also, vehicular movement from Isaac Boro Park and Mile 1 towards UTC to the town were halted.

Associated Press
Nigerian Forces Attack Oil-Region Gang
By DAN UDOH 08.17.07, 11:06 AM ET

PORT HARCOURT, Nigeria -

Authorities imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew Friday in the heart of Nigeria's oil region, where security forces and gang members have clashed in battles that left dozens feared dead.

The curfew in Rivers State will last at least one week and then be reevaluated, officials said. The fighting has been concentrated in Port Harcourt, the region's largest city and the main hub for oil companies that pump the crude in Africa's biggest producer.

"Members of the public are enjoined to go about their duties without fear, but they are advised to conclude all their daily transactions and get back to their homes before the commencement of the curfew," state spokesman Emma Okah said.

With no reports on further fighting between security forces and supporters of a top gang leader, Soboma George, troops flooded into the hardest-hit areas - and unknown numbers of residents took advantage of the calm to flee.

Security forces mounted checkpoints around the area, residents said.

Gunfire broke out early Thursday between security forces and supporters of George, who was being sought by police. The sides battled in mostly empty streets for much of that day.

A senior military official, speaking on condition of anonymity due to prohibitions on dealing with the media, said three boatloads of fighters on the waterways near Port Harcourt had been hit by rockets from a Nigerian helicopter gunship.

The boats favored by fighters in the Niger Delta region can carry a dozen or more men. The military official said all the fighters in the destroyed boat were believed killed. He couldn't give an exact death toll.

Officials said they thought George, who's believed to be linked to the region's main militant movement, had died in the fighting, as he was thought to be inside a building that burned to the ground. But a top militant leader said he had spoken on the telephone with George after the clash. Neither account could be independently verified.

The military sought George after his forces fought six days of deadly turf battles last week with supporters of another gang leader, Ateke Tom. At least 15 people died in that fight in Port Harcourt.

Militants seeking greater oil funds stepped up their bombings and kidnappings in late 2005. Criminal gangs quickly took advantage of the decreasing security situation and the region is now mired in lawlessness.

Reuters

Curfew in Nigerian oil city after gun battles
Fri Aug 17, 2007 10:24AM EDT

By Austin Ekeinde

PORT HARCOURT, Nigeria (Reuters) - The government imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew on Port Harcourt, Nigeria's main oil city, on Friday after dozens of people were killed in gun battles.

Up to 40 people died in street fighting between troops and heavily armed gangsters on Thursday, local newspapers reported, and residents said they expected the gunmen to return to the sprawling riverside city, which serves as the base for Africa's largest oil industry.

"I am afraid to go out far from my house," said Nse Jim, a motorcycle taxi driver.

"Soldiers are everywhere, but if you know these bad boys, they will start trouble again in two or three days."

The state government said movement would be restricted from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. for one week from Friday in the first instance. A police spokeswoman had earlier wrongly stated the curfew would start at 6 p.m.

Shops reopened on Friday and people and traffic were on the streets, but in smaller numbers than normal.

Port Harcourt is the biggest city in the oil-producing Niger Delta and oil companies including Royal Dutch Shell have offices there. It is also home to two of Nigeria's four oil refineries.

Oil companies told workers in the city to stay at home, but staffing at oilfields and export terminals in the world's eighth largest exporter was unaffected, industry officials said.

After six days of gun battles between rival gangs last week, troops launched dawn raids on Thursday using machineguns and rockets on suspected gang hideouts in the city.

Young men armed with assault rifles, dynamite and knives invaded five different districts of the city, including the area around the state government headquarters, and troops fought them off with helicopter gunships.

RETURNING TO NORMAL

Sagir Musa, spokesman for the military task force in the delta, said the situation was returning to normal.

"We are looking at hideouts of militants so, in the event of any crisis, the security forces are in a position to contain it in minimum time," he said.

"As the situation normalizes we are tactically withdrawing but we will only withdraw completely when the situation is fully normalized."

Violence surged in the vast wetlands region early last year when militants complaining of poverty and neglect blew up pipelines and kidnapped foreign workers. They demanded more regional control over Africa's largest oil industry.

The attacks forced thousands of foreign workers to leave the wetlands region, reducing crude output by at least a fifth and raising world oil prices.

The government of President Umaru Yar'Adua, which took office in May, has begun to address some of the militants' demands but the violence is spiraling out of control.

More than 200 people have been kidnapped in 18 months, mostly for ransom, and armed robberies are on the rise.

The army has blamed two rival militia leaders, Ateke Tom and Soboma George, for the latest fighting.

"What they want is some kind of money from government without working for it. And the Rivers state government has decided for now, even before now, not to give any such money," said Celestine Omehia, governor of Rivers state, earlier this week.

Human rights activists say that like many militias in the delta, these gangs were at various times sponsored by politicians who used them to rig elections or scare opponents.

(Additional reporting by Tom Ashby in Lagos)

© Reuters 2006. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by caching, framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.
Reuters journalists are subject to the Reuters Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.

eke lleee le, gun shottt

Those stupid Gangs and Militants can burn in Hell.

Wonfe turn Naija si Iraq.

If Soboma is alive and the Police made the wrong call,it will only serve to strenghten him.Nigerians are a supertitious lot and soon,stories will abound of his supernatural powers which enables him to escape from the clutches of the Security services.

SOBOMA IS NOT DEAD. I AM NOT RAISING AN ALARM. MY NEIGHBOURS SAY THAT THEY SAW HIM, BUT ME, I DID NOT SEE HIM.

WELL, I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT HE IS DEAD, BECAUSE WITH THE WAY MY NEIGHBOURS WERE SAYING IT, IT APPEARS THAT THEY ACTUALLY SAW HIM - THEY ARE NOT EXXAGERATING, BUT THEY SAID THAT HE WAS LEAPING. SO, I BELIEVE THAT MAYBE HE MUST HAVE BEEN HIT BY BULLETS.

IS IT NOT TIME FOR FEDERAL GOVT TO DECLARE STATE OF EMERGENCY? ME, I DO NOT KNOW WHAT THE FEDERAL GOVT IS WAITING FOR?

@otuonye do u really think a state of emergency will solve d problem?

Mike Okiro said they might have to do a DNA on Soboma's corpse, well what will they compare the data they obtain with to confirm. Except they actually have records of his DNA from the previous times he went to prison but I doubt if our police do actually keep records DNA of all those they arrested in the past.

@godslead

My brother, what else do you want me to say? First of all, Are you staying in PH? If you are, I guess you witnessed the showdown that happened between the millitants and the policemen. What other rememdy would you proffer if you were in power?

As for me, state of emergency would be the best option. Anyway, that is my own opinion. Everybody has his.

PAJOJO

DNA test ke? I read that on the website of Thisday Newspaper. Anyway, I still doubt if our police is well-organized to that level - to be keeping DNA samples of arrested suspects/criminals.

PAJOJO

@Otuonye yes I stay in PH.Was just wondering if a state of emergency would solve this problem,its not like I hv any objection.Besides abeg anytin that can stop this buruhaha,i fully support it o.

I hope that Soboma dude is dead. He has no regard for the lives of Nigerians, so what is he fighting for?

They are not fighting for any emancipation, they are fighting for quick cash into their bank accounts.

These Gangs are Terrorists. They Kill Nigerian Citizens, and the only thing on their mind is money.

The Joint Task Force should kill em all.

When i was going to mile 1 yesterday, I saw some soldiers who asked everyone in the car to come out for a search.
The driver gets back to the car while the remaing people walk pass the with their hands up.
That's a serious issue. After leaving the soldiers miles away, i still saw people with their hands still in the air. Such a pity.