World

Nigerian Militants Invite Clooney to Visit

by Jarrett Martineau | January 19, 2008 at 10:36 am

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A day after being named a UN 'messenger of peace', George Clooney may have his first assignment: a visit to Nigeria to help prevent the troubled nation from "plunging into the abyss of war".

Militants in Nigeria's restive oil region on Saturday invited actor and peace activist George Clooney to visit the area and asked for U.N. intervention in their conflict.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon designated Clooney as a U.N. "messenger of peace" Friday to promote the world body's activities, especially in its far-flung peacekeeping missions. The 46-year-old actor has been campaigning for an end to the 4 1/2-year war in Darfur and for humanitarian aid for the millions caught up in the conflict.

Nigeria's Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta congratulated Clooney on his appointment and invited him to visit their impoverished region, which has been wracked by two years of fighting, bombings and kidnapping of foreign workers.