Four foreign oil workers who were kidnapped by militant protesters in the Niger Delta last week were allowed yesterday to phone Reuters news agency. Along with passing on messages to their families, they also read out the demands of the protesters.

Today is the seventh day of their captivity. They where taken hostage during a series of attacks on oil pipelines and facilities belonging to Shell Oil. The effect has been to help drive up world prices and force Shell to evacuate over 300 members of staff from three oil platforms. Apparently they are considering more withdrawals amid fears over where the protesters will strike next.

The four hostages included an American, a Bulgarian, a Honduran and a British man who is believed to be a mercenary working for Shell. They said in what appeared to be a prepared statement that had been treated well, but any attempted rescue would cost them their lives.

"I'd like to contact my family and let them know that I am alright and everything with us is good," said the Honduran who identified himself as Harry Ebanks. "The only thing, the environment is not good with us because there is a lot of mosquitoes and it is dangerous for us."

The Briton, an ex-military man who identified himself as Nigel Watson-Clark, read out a list of five demands from the protesters who are part of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta.

"The Nigerian government should not make any military intervention. They should not make any attempt to rescue us as it has been made clear that it may result in the loss of our lives," he said.

The America, Patrick Landry, repeated, "No military intervention is a must. This climate in the conditions we're in is not conducive to us." He added: "I'd like y'all to contact my family and let them know that I'm alright, these people are treating me good, but the climate is not what it should be."

After years of demonstrations and repression, the protesters have vowed to stop all oil exports from Nigeria and advised workers to leave the delta or die. They have demanded local control of the Niger Delta's oil wealth and say that a payment of $1.5 billion should be made by Shell to the Bayelsa state government to compensate for pollution. They are also seeking the release of three political prisoners.

"If the Nigerian government does not meet these demands in 48 hours, whatever happens is in their own doing," said the Briton and pleaded for the British government to put pressure on Nigeria officials to negotiate.

Eight protesters were killed in a gun fight during an action against a Shell platform on Sunday. The attacks last week cut Shell's Nigerian oil output by 10%. The possibility of a major Shell pullout will increase the pressure on Negerias president, Olusegun Obasanjo's, to crack down harder on the protesters.

Crude oil prices spiked past $65, up $1.35 to $65.27 a barrel by afternoon trading amid fear over US and EU action against Iran, along with the Shells problems in Nigeria. Natural gas and heating oil also rose.

The Niger Delta accounts for almost all of Nigeria's 2.4 million barrels a day oil production and is the fifth-biggest source of U.S. oil imports. Around 20 million people live in the region in abject poverty surrounded by the pollution and gas flares of Shells multibillion-dollar oil industry.

Since officially being given independence from Britain in 1960, continued colonial style exploitation continued under the hands of successive military dictators happy to sell out their country for personal wealth from the likes of Shell.

Meanwhile, the International Energy Agency said today that global energy demand is expected to grow by massive 2.2 percent this year (up also .5% on previous years). Led by the U.S.A. and increasingly China (with around 7% growth in December), world's energy consumption tops over 85 million barrels a day, that is up almost 2 million barrels a day since last year.