Criticism over conflict in Nigeria

[struggle4progress]

Royal Dutch/Shell faces a "high intensity conflict" in Nigeria's Niger Delta that is as severe as those in Chechnya and Colombia, according to an internally commissioned report.

The confidential document, which has been seen by the Financial Times, says organised large-scale oil theft from pipes and well-heads is "the most significant accelerator" of conflict.
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The money has allowed community-based militias to buy thousands of weapons, including former Soviet-type small arms, rocket launchers and possibly short-range missiles. A high-intensity conflict is where more than 1,000 die a year.

Written by a group of external consultants, the report accuses Shell of a "quick-fix, reactive and divisive" approach to community relations and says Delta violence could force it to pull out of onshore production within five years.
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