May 19, 2010 - Naharnet - Gunmen Kidnap Four Lebanese Workers in Nigeria

Gunmen kidnapped four Lebanese construction workers in oil rich southern Nigeria, a security source said on Saturday.
The four -- workers of Stemco construction firm -- were seized in Akwa Ibom, one of Nigeria's nine oil-rich states.

Akwa Ibom neighbors Rivers state, the oil hub of the restive oil-producing Niger Delta region.

Hundreds of foreigners and locals, mostly oil workers, have been kidnapped in recent years in Nigeria, most of them in the Niger Delta.

Many have been released unharmed, but in some cases only after payment of ransom.(AFP)