Nigerian oil militants claimed to have blown up a pipeline belonging to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation in what would be their first attack since they expressed a willingness to engage in talks with the government. “At 4:00am @NDAvengers blow up NNPC pipeline in Oruk Anam Local Government Area in Akwa Ibom,” Niger Delta Avengers said Thursday in a tweet from an unverified account. NNPC spokesman Garba Deen Muhammad did not answer calls or text messages seeking a confirmation. The attack is a setback after the group signaled for the first time on June 13 that it would talk with the government of Africa’s second-largest crude producer if certain conditions were met. The militants, whose assaults on oil infrastructure have sent output plunging to its lowest in 27 years, have targeted Nigeria’s main source of foreign exchange, deepening the country’s economic crisis. Nigerian State Minister for Petroleum Resources Emmanuel […]