[xtypo_dropcap]T[/xtypo_dropcap]uesday night, pirates on speedboats attacked the Bourbon Alexandre off the coast of Nigeria, kidnapping three French crewmen, leaving 13 others unharmed on the vessel, according to the Bourbon group website. So far no claim has been made. Herve Morin, the French defense minister said it was an “act of piracy” and dismissed it being a possible terrorist attack, Le Monde reports.
The Bourbon-owned ship was operating on the offshore oil field of Addax off the Nigerian coast, in the Gulf of Guinea when it was attacked. He said that in the Gulf of Guinea there were a hundred acts of piracy in 2009. In southern Nigeria hundreds of people have been kidnapped since 2006.
Rebels in the area want better distribution of oil profits. Other criminal gangs operating there are just demanding ransom payments. Moving toward emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), a main rebel group has threatened to attack oil installations of the French group. Bourbon, which provides marine service to the oil sector, announced its crisis units are working in close contact with French and Nigerian authorities to achieve rapid liberation in safe conditions.
