Gunmen kidnap 32 people from southern Nigeria train station - Reuters.com

YENAGOA, NIGERIA, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Gunmen equipped with AK-47 rifles person abducted much than 30 radical from a bid presumption successful Nigeria's confederate Edo state, the governor's bureau said connected Sunday.

The onslaught is the latest illustration of the increasing insecurity that has dispersed to astir each country of Africa's astir populous country, posing a situation to the authorities successful beforehand of a February statesmanlike election.

Police said successful a connection that equipped herdsmen had attacked Tom Ikimi presumption astatine 4 p.m. (1500 GMT) arsenic passengers awaited a bid to Warri, an lipid hub successful adjacent Delta state. The presumption is immoderate 111 km northeast of authorities superior Benin City and adjacent to the borderline with Anambra state.

Some radical astatine the presumption were changeable successful the attack, constabulary said.

Edo authorities accusation commissioner Chris Osa Nehikhare said the kidnappers had taken 32 people, though 1 had already escaped.

"At the moment, information unit made up of the subject and the constabulary arsenic good arsenic men of the vigilante web and hunters are intensifying hunt and rescue operations successful a tenable radius to rescue the kidnap victims," helium said. "We are assured that the different victims volition beryllium rescued successful the coming hours."

The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) had closed the presumption until further announcement and the national proscription ministry called the kidnappings "utterly barbaric".

The NRC past period reopened a obstruction service linking the superior Abuja with bluish Kaduna state, months aft gunmen blew up the tracks, kidnapped dozens of passengers and killed six people.

The past hostage taken successful that March onslaught was not freed until October.

Insecurity is rampant crossed Nigeria, with Islamist insurgencies successful the northeast, banditry successful the northwest, separatists successful the southeast and farmer-herdsmen clashes successful the cardinal states.

Reporting by Tife Owolabi; Additional reporting by Felix Onuah successful Abuja and Garba Muhammad successful Kaduna; Editing by David Holmes

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