Nigerian militants kidnap 3-year-old British girl

LAGOS, July 5 (Xinhua) -- A three-year-old British girl was seized by armed kidnappers in Nigeria's southeastern Niger Delta area, local media quoted police as saying in Port Harcourt, the capital city of the area's Rivers State, on Thursday.
The three-year-old, Margaret Hill, a daughter of a British oil worker, was taken hostage on her way to school in the rebellious oil city by unidentified gunmen, according to reports.
The kidnapping follows that of five oil workers on Wednesday, the first since the main militant group in the area called off a month-long cease-fire.
Margaret Hill is the third child to be kidnapped by unknown gunmen in Nigeria in the last couple of weeks.
Since the beginning of this year, more than 100 foreigners have been abducted in southeastern Nigeria. Nigeria is Africa's largest oil producer with a daily crude output of 2.6 million barrels.
However, the repeated occurrence of kidnapping has scared thousands of foreign oil workers away since last year, forcing the oil production to reduce by nearly 25 percent.
Britain urges release of kidnapped girl in Nigeria
LONDON, July 5 (Xinhua) -- The British Foreign Office on Thursday called for the "immediate safe release" of a British girl kidnapped by gunmen in Nigeria's Niger Delta region.
"We do not know who took her. We are in contact with her parents and are providing assistance. High Commission officials are in contact with the Nigerian authorities," a Foreign Office spokesman said.
Officials were "aware of reports of a three-year-old girl missing in Nigeria and we are urgently seeking information," he added.