CNN
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A US convoy was attacked in Nigeria on Tuesday, killing four people, including two people from the US consulate and two police officers, and kidnapping three others, according to local police and US officials.
The attack took place in the southeastern part of Anambra, where the Anambra Police Command told CNN that the attackers “murdered two policemen and two employees of the US consulate and set their bodies and their vehicles on fire.”
The staff killed were not US citizens, according to the White House and local police. “No US citizens were involved and therefore no US citizens were harmed,” said John Kirby of the US National Security Council. “We are aware of some casualties, maybe even some fatalities.”
When the assailants saw the security forces, “they got rid of two police officers and a driver of the other vehicle in the convoy,” said Ikenga Tochukwu, Deputy Inspector General of Police. “No US citizen was in the convoy,” he added.
Police said joint security forces “have commenced a rescue and rescue operation in the area.”
A State Department spokesman said Tuesday that “Mission Nigeria personnel are working with Nigerian security services to investigate.”
They continued: “The safety of our staff is always paramount and we take extensive precautions when organizing trips to the field,” they continued.
