Strike violence mounts in Nigeria

Police were accused of shooting dead at least 10 demonstrators in Nigeria's commercial capital, Lagos, yesterday as strikes and riots escalated just days before the US president's visit.

The violence marked the second week of a general strike called in protest at the government's decision to raise fuel prices.

In the city of Uyo mobs reportedly looted shops and houses and torched cars. In Lagos police fired tear gas and live rounds into the air to disperse crowds trying to prevent people from returning to work after a union split over continuing the strike.

Protesters smashed windshields and lit bonfires, but yesterday afternoon police vowed to regain control. "They're everywhere trying to cause trouble, molesting people going about their business, but we'll deal with them," said Emmanuel Ighodalo, of the Lagos police.

The capital, Abuja, where Mr Bush is due to spend Friday night in the final leg of his Africa tour, has also been a target for protesters, as the seat of the federal government.

The strike was triggered when the president, Olusegun Obasanjo, last month announced an increase in the price of petrol at the pump, blaming a need to cut subsidies. Economists claim the subsidies cause petrol to be smuggled abroad, creating shortages and fuel queues, but many Nigerians have criticised successive regimes for ruining the economy and say the least they can expect is cheap petrol.

Strikes previously forced the government to rescind efforts at price rises. "We did it before and we'll do it again," Edward, a Lagos taxi driver, said.

In another development, a Shell spokesman said yesterday that gunmen in Nigeria's oil-rich delta had released a German and two Filipinos, employees of the firm held captive for 14 days.