A row over the site of a new school turned violent on Sunday in southern Nigeria’s oil-rich Ogoniland region, with 10 houses set on fire, officials said.
Fighting erupted between the communities of Barako and Nweviara over which should provide the site for the primary school that is to be established by the government.
“Ten houses were razed in fighting between the two communities,” Rivers State government spokesman Blessing Wikina told AFP, adding that police had contained the situation.
Ogoniland is a hotbed of civil unrest in the Niger Delta, with inhabitants accusing foreign oil companies of destroying the region’s eco-system without paying adequate compensation.