Nairobi/Abuja - A Nigerian militant group has said that none of its fighters were among hundreds of youths arrested in the oil-rich yet restive Niger Delta province.

Military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Sagir Musa said Tuesday that over 400 youths were arrested following reports that militants were recruiting to replace those killed during a recent upsurge in attacks on oil facilities.

"We can confirm that none of our fighters have been arrested following the blind clampdown on innocent civilians in Rivers state," Jomo Gbomo, spokesman for the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), said in a statement.

MEND attacked platforms, pipelines and oil flow-stations owned by Chevron, Shell and Agip during a six-day "oil war" in mid-September and claimed to have killed dozens of soldiers.

The Nigerian military has disputed the casualty figures.

Militant groups such as MEND often attack oil installations and kidnap expatriate workers, saying they are fighting for a greater share of profits from oil exploitation for the poor of the region.

The government says they are merely criminal gangs intent on stealing oil and extorting money.

Prior to the latest string of attacks, the unrest had cut oil production by around a fifth since early 2006, helping to push up global oil prices and allowing Angola to surpass Nigeria as Africa's biggest oil exporter.

The Niger Delta is one of Nigeria's biggest concerns, and President Umaru Yar'Adua, speaking Wednesday on the 48th anniversary of Nigeria's independence from Britain, said he was committed to finding a solution.

"We have set up a Niger Delta Ministry to anchor in a holistic manner, the execution of the Niger Delta Development Master Plan," he said.

"We are confident that this is the way to go in meaningfully addressing the physical infrastructure and human capital development challenges which the region presents," he added.

Yar'Adua set up the new ministry earlier this month, but it has received a lukewarm response.

An earlier government body designed to improve the region proved ineffectual and was hit by a major corruption scandal. (dpa)