Nigeria is to release militant¹ leader Henry Okah because he has accepted a government amnesty offer, the presidential spokesman says.

尼日利亚总统发言人称，尼日利亚将要释放叛军首领Henry Okah，因为他已经接受政府特赦令。

Henry Okah has been facing treason and gun-running charges

Henry Okah is a leader of the Mend militant group in the oil-rich Niger Delta² region.

The government recently offered an amnesty（大赦，特赦） to members of any militant group which laid down its weapons.

Speaking on the sidelines of the G8 summit in Italy, Mr Adeniyi said: "The president is delighted to hear that he [Mr Okah] has accepted the amnesty offer. With his acceptance, he will be released when the formalities（礼节，程序） are concluded."

A senior spokesman for the Mend rebels, General Boyloaf, confirmed to the BBC that, if Henry Okah was set free, the organisation³ would lay down its arms.

But he said the release of Henry Okah was just one issue - and there were other issues to be settled in the region.

Local rights

The Mend rebels have been fighting for an increased share of Nigeria's vast oil wealth in the Niger Delta region, but the government has in the past dismissed（不再考虑，解雇） them as criminals.

The militants⁴ say they are fighting for the rights of local people in the delta（三角洲）.

Henry Okah is in custody⁵（被拘留中） facing trial on charges including gun-running after being arrested in Angola in 2007.

The government's amnesty offer is part of an effort to end years of rebel attacks on the Nigerian oil industry. Oil output has suffered because of such attacks.

The government has said militants who give up their weapons by October will benefit from a rehabilitation⁶（复原） programme, including educational and training opportunities.

Correspondents say that even if Mr Okah is released, it is not clear whether there will be peace in the region.

They say that because the unrest in the Niger Delta is not a straightforward⁷ political struggle, there are doubts whether the amnesty alone will be enough to halt opportunistic（机会主义的，投机取巧的） attacks, oil theft and kidnapping（诱拐，拐骗）.