Nigerian Civil War

==Kwale oilfield incident==
In May 1969 a company of Biafran commandos raided an oil field in [[Kwale (Nigeria)|Kwale]] and killed 11 [[Saipem]] workers and [[Agip]] technicians. They captured three Europeans unhurt and then at a nearby [[Okpai]] Field Development Biafran commandos surrounded and captured 15 more expatriate personnel. The captives included 14 [[Italy|Italians]], 3 [[West Germany|West Germans]] and one [[Lebanon|Lebanese]]. It was claimed that the foreigners were captured fighting alongside Nigerians against Biafran troops and that they assisted Nigerians in constructing roads to aid them in their operations against Biafra. They were tried by a Biafran court and sentenced to death.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2020-01-15 |title=Remembering Nigeria's Biafra war that many prefer to forget |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-51094093 |access-date=2022-10-26}}</ref>

This incident caused an international uproar. In the month that followed [[Pope Paul VI]], the governments of Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States of America mounted concerted pressure on Biafra. On 4 June 1969, after receiving a personal direct mail from the Pope, Ojukwu pardoned the foreigners. They were released to the special envoys sent by the governments of [[Ivory Coast]] and [[Gabon]] and left Biafra.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://nationalmirroronline.net/new/the-kwale-oilfi-eld-incident-nigeria-biafra-war-2/|title=The Kwale oilfield incident: Nigeria –Biafra War (2)|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160423060946/http://nationalmirroronline.net/new/the-kwale-oilfi-eld-incident-nigeria-biafra-war-2/|archive-date=23 April 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.segun.bizland.com/ojukwu.htm|title=Ojukwu on the Kwale Incident|website=segun.bizland.com}}</ref>