Claims that major pipeline has been blown up

The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) claimed on 19 June 2009 that it blew up a pipeline operated by the Italian firm Agip in Nembe in the southern Bayelsa state. The company has not confirmed the claim that the pipeline -- which transports oil to the Brass export terminal -- was destroyed. MEND also claimed to have disarmed seven Nigerian soldiers and destroyed their boat during the attack. The Nigerian military denied the claim, but confirmed that soldiers engaged in a “skirmish” with the rebels.