Five Police, Three Soldiers Killed in Nigeria's Oil Region

Five police officers and three soldiers have been killed in separate attacks in Nigeria's oil-producing south, police and the army said on Wednesday.

The violence comes after increasing attacks against oil facilities by militants wanting a fairer share of revenue for local people in the delta region.

In the first incident, gunmen shot dead five police on their way to Yenagoa, the capital of Bayelsa state, said police spokesman Ahmad Mohammad, in neighboring Rivers state.

"Five policemen were killed in an ambush at Okogbie in Ahoada area of the state in the early hours of Monday," he told AFP, calling the killing "a dastardly act".

The army said three soldiers attached to the Joint Task Force (JTF) protecting oil facilities were killed in a gun battle with militants and sea pirates in Bayelsa, also on Monday.

JTF spokesman Colonel Isa Ado said the shooting took place in Foropa in the southern Ijaw local government area.

"The location came under fierce attack and three of our soldiers, who were hit by bullets, died on their way to the hospital," he said, adding many of the attackers also died.

The Niger delta was plagued in the 2000s by rebels who attacked oil pipelines and kidnapped workers, wreaking havoc on production.

The region's maze of creeks and tributaries have also been used by maritime pirates who attack ships and take hostages off the Gulf of Guinea.

Fresh attacks, including on an offshore platform operated by U.S. oil giant Chevron, and the evacuation of a facility run by Shell's Nigerian arm have raised fears of a return to violence.

In recent months, pipelines have also been hit in what Nigeria's military has called "economic terrorism". On Tuesday, figures indicated crude output in Nigeria had fallen to a 22-year low.

Analysts the attributed the renewed unrest to the winding down of an amnesty program for former oil rebels and the arrest of a prominent former militant commander on corruption charges.