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https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601081&sid=a09Dc4cqzsF0&refer=australia Shell Nigeria Oil Rig Attacked; Five Workers Abducted (Update2) By Julie Ziegler July 4 (Bloomberg) -- Royal Dutch Shell Plc's Nigeria venture said an oil rig was attacked and five expatriate contractors working for Lonestar Drilling Nigeria Ltd. were taken hostage. Precious Okolobo, a spokesman for Shell's Nigerian venture, said the attack occurred early this morning in the Soku field, where the rig was drilling a well. No production was affected, he said. Okolobo said he couldn't confirm the nationalities of the hostages. Two New Zealanders, one Australian, one Lebanese and one Venezuelan were abducted, according to Reuters. The kidnappings come after the Movement for the Emancipation for the Niger Delta, or MEND, ended a one-month ceasefire. Jomo Gbomo, spokesman for the militant group, said MEND wasn't involved. More than 200 expatriates have been kidnapped in the Niger Delta since the beginning of last year. Two members of the Nigerian navy are missing after fighting with militants in Rivers state earlier this week, Navy spokesman Charles Medani said today in an interview. ``With the end of our truce, the reins have been taken off criminal gangs,'' Gbomo said in an e-mail to Bloomberg. A woman who answered the telephone at the headquarters of Lonestar Drilling said no one was available to comment. President Umaru Yar'Adua, elected on May 29, pledged to tackle crime in the Niger Delta, in a statement released yesterday by his office. More than 25 foreigners have been taken hostage since he took office. Okolobo also said output at the Nembe Creek pipeline was ``ramping up'' after repairs following a leak detected in late May. He couldn't say when the pipeline would return to its full capacity of 77,000 barrels a day. To contact the reporter on this story: Julie Ziegler in Lagos at [e-mail] . Last Updated: July 4, 2007 11:39 EDT