Kidnappers threaten to kill British girl, age 3
The mother of a three-year-old British girl snatched in Nigeria said the kidnappers had telephoned her and threatened to kill her daughter.
Margaret Hill, the daughter of oil worker Mike Hill, was kidnapped on Thursday as she travelled to school by car in Port Harcourt, in the south of the country.
Margaret's mother, Oluchi Hill, has revealed that the kidnappers threatened to kill her daughter unless Mr Hill agreed to take the child's place.
She told the BBC they had called on Friday morning and demanded a meeting in a town in the Niger Delta, then allowed her to speak to her daughter who was crying.
Mrs Hill, a Nigerian national, said the kidnappers told her to meet them in a town in Bayelsa State but added that neither she nor the police had been able to locate it.
"They say I can bring my husband to swap with the baby," she said. "He wanted to go down for his baby but the police commander told him not to."
She said the kidnappers then threatened to kill Margaret if Mr Hill did not come within three hours - but she had not heard from them since.
Police and diplomats are frantically working to help secure Margaret's release.
Kidnappers smashed a window as the car sat in heavy morning traffic and grabbed the toddler, according to an official at the British High Commission.
Mr Hill, who has lived in Nigeria for 10 years is originally from Murton in Co Durham. It is believed that he works for Nigerian-based drilling firm Lonestar.
The Foreign Office has called for the "immediate safe release" of the girl. "We do not know who took her. We are in contact with her parents and are providing assistance," a spokeswoman said.
Kidnappings have become common in the south of the country. Nigeria is Africa's leading oil exporter, but despite its oil wealth, 60 per cent of the country's population still live below the poverty line.
More than a dozen foreigners are currently in captivity and more than 200 have been taken since the end of 2005.
The targeting of women and children is uncommon, with attackers generally focusing on male employees of large international companies that are presumed to have money for ransom payments.
Hostages are generally released unharmed after a ransom is paid - often by governments that control huge, unregulated security slush funds, according to industry officials.
The Foreign Office advises against all travel to the Niger Delta including Port Harcourt because of the "very high risk'' of kidnapping, armed robbery and other armed attacks.
In 15 separate incidents since January last night, 31 British nationals and more than 180 foreign nationals have been kidnapped in the Niger Delta area and one Briton has been killed.
