Two kidnapped US embassy staff have been rescued unharmed in Nigeria, say police, days after seven other people travelling in the same convoy were killed.
The attack occurred on Tuesday in Ogbaru’s south-eastern region, which has been under curfew for the past year due to safety concerns.
According to a local official, the intruders shot at the vehicles and set them on fire, burning the deceased beyond recognition.
It is unknown who the gunmen were.
Some officials blame Igbo separatists from the Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob) group, which is known to operate in this region. Ipob has yet to respond to the charges.
President Muhammadu Buhari, who is leaving office later this month after promising and failing to end Nigeria’s security issue, says his administration is “committed to fishing out” the perpetrators of Tuesday’s attack.
There were no US citizens among the dead, and there are “no indications at this time that it was directed at our mission,” according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Three of the seven people slain on Tuesday were Nigerian embassy employees and four were security escorts. Police have not officially identified the two victims who were kidnapped and then freed.
“Operations are still ongoing, and more information will be provided,” said Anambra state police spokesman Ikenga Tochukwu.
