Nigerian militants threaten more oil attacks

LAGOS, March 27 (Reuters) - Nigerian militants who freed three foreign oil worker hostages on Monday said the release did not signify an end to their attacks on oil facilities which have already cut exports by a quarter.

The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) said kidnappings were a distraction for its fighters and that they would resume a three-month campaign of sabotage against the world's eighth largest exporter of crude oil.

"This does not signify an end to our attacks. Hostage keeping is a distraction and ties down our units to this irrelevant enterprise," the militants said in an email to Reuters.

"We will concentrate our attacks now solely on oil facilities and workers found on these facilities."

The militants said the three hostages -- two Americans and one Briton -- were released unconditionally after five weeks in captivity. The release had raised hopes of an end to the attacks which have reduced output by 630,000 barrels a day.

The three men were snatched on Feb. 18 along with six others from a barge in the southern Niger Delta operated by U.S. oil services company Willbros . The other six were released on March 1.

The militants said they were taken only to be used as human shields to prevent military attacks on villages in the Gbaramatu area of Delta state, and that this threat no longer existed.

They had previously demanded more local control over the delta's oil wealth, the release of two jailed Ijaw leaders and compensation for oil pollution as conditions for their release.

"There were close to 800 fighters tied down in Gbaramatu on account of this. They would have served better use elsewhere," the militants said.