Truce Called in a Violent Nigerian Region Rebels in an oil-rich region of Nigeria, a place that has often been the scene of violent clashes, have decided to declare a 60-day ceasefire, the BBC reports. The group, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), declared the ceasefire after one its leaders was released from a Nigerian jail. MEND militants have been fighting government forces in the region for a fair share of the area’s oil wealth by allegedly kidnapping oil workers and stealing oil. Government officials see the period as an opportunity to bring peace to the troubled region. “That’s a good time for us to work with them [MEND], chat with them and come out with some conclusions,” minister for the delta region, Ufot Ekaette told the BBC. But, not too long after the ceasefire was declared, members of MEND accused government forces of moving towards one of their camps. “Barely 12 hours into our ceasefire, the military Joint Task Force (JTF) has dispatched seven gunboats with heavily armed troops from Warri and are headed towards one of our camps…If this information from a very reliable source within the JTF happens to be true, the ceasefire will be called off with immediate effect,” a statement from the group said. Government officials deny MEND’s claim, but did say that the military will continue to escort oil workers in the region, reports the BBC.

Somali Gunmen Kidnap French Advisers Somali gunmen kidnapped two French advisers from a Mogadishu hotel earlier this week, reports CNN. The two advisers were in the country assisting Somalia’s government with security, the French Foreign Ministry said in a statement. About 10 gunmen pushed their way into the Sahafi hotel Tuesday morning – a hotel that serves many international visitors – and walked the two hostages (who were blindfolded and bound) from the hotel to an insurgent stronghold, CNN reports. The east African nation has been without a stable government since the early 1990s. Islamist insurgency has been rampant in the nation and clashes between insurgents and pro-government forces have led to many Somalis fleeing the capital, Mogadishu.