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ANAMBRA, Nigeria — A United States convoy was attacked in Nigeria on Tuesday and four people were killed, including two personnel from the U.S. consulate and two police officers, and three others were kidnapped, according to local police and U.S. officials.
The attack took place in the southeastern Anambra state, with Anambra Police Command telling CNN that the attackers "murdered two police operatives and two staff of the U.S. consulate and set their bodies and their vehicles ablaze."
The personnel who were killed were not U.S. citizens, according to the White House and the local police. "No U.S. citizens were involved and therefore there were no U.S. citizens hurt," said John Kirby of the U.S. National Security Council. "We are aware of some casualties, perhaps even some killed."
When the assailants saw security forces "they made away with two police operatives and a driver of the second vehicle in the convoy," Ikenga Tochukwu, deputy superintendent of police, said. "No U.S. citizen was in the convoy," he added.
Police said that joint security forces "have embarked on a rescue and recovery operation in the area."
A State Department spokesperson said Tuesday that "Mission Nigeria personnel are working with Nigerian security services to investigate."
They continued: "The security of our personnel is always paramount, and we take extensive precautions when organizing trips to the field," they continued.
