Gunmen kidnap 32 passengers waiting to board train at station as several injured

09 January 2023 , 15:03

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Nigerian Railway Corporation personnel on a platform in Abujas, Nigeria in December (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Gunmen have kidnapped several passengers at a railway station in southern Nigeria, police said.

Armed men attacked the station in Igueben town in Edo State, abducting an unknown number of people waiting to board, said Chidi Nwabuzor, the police spokesman for Edo State, in a statement.

The kidnappers " shot sporadically into the air" before taking the passengers, leaving some with bullet wounds, Mr Nwabuzor said.

Rescue operations are underway to find the victims and arrest the abductors.

Saturday night's incident is the latest in a series targeting railway stations in the West African nation.

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Nigerian cops stand on guard near the state Central Bank of Nigeria headquarters in Benin, Edo state (NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Last year, gunmen attacked a train near the capital city, Abuja, killing seven people and abducting several others.

The attack on Saturday is the first in southern Nigeria, raising concerns among the population the gunmen are expanding their reach.

The violence is often carried out by young cattle herders fighting with rural villages for access to land and water, security officials say.

Nigeria's government is trying to stem growing insecurity in the country ahead of next month's presidential elections.

Some of the victims were shot, reports say (2020 file picture) (AFP via Getty Images)

While authorities have promised to increase security at railway stations, conflict analysts say the nation's security forces are overstretched.

In December last year, 33 ISIS wives were slaughtered by the Boko Haram terror group in a revenge execution in Nigeria.

Boko Haram, an Islamist militant group, killed the partners of Islamist State fighters as fighting escalated between the rivals.

It began in November when Boko Haram leader Ali Ngulde sent his troops to a camp to execute their wives.

The group's commander Malam Aboubakar and more than a 12 others were killed by ISWAP fighters after negotiations failed Zagazola Makama, a security analyst said.

SWAP fighters were once part the Islamist militant group but divided and became rivals by encouraging other Boko Haram members to defect and increasing support in civilian populations.

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