Trial of rebel may spark unrest

Police accused a detained rebel leader from the oil-producing Niger Delta of killings, arms dealing, oil smuggling and other crimes, raising the prospect of a trial that could destabilize the area.

Henry Okah was extradited from Angola to Nigeria a week ago, and uncertainty over his fate has already increased tensions in the delta, where people are impoverished despite the oil production.

Anger among militants over what they see as government persecution of a man they hail as a freedom fighter risks igniting a new round of violence and derailing peace talks.

Okah’s group, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, said his lawyers had filed a suit challenging his detention at a federal high court in the capital, Abuja.