At least 35 women are missing after kidnappers abducted them while they were coming back from a wedding in northwestern Nigeria.
The mass kidnapping in Katsina state is the largest in a string of recent abductions in Nigeria.
According to police spokesman Abubakar Aliyu, the suspected armed bandits ambushed and kidnapped about 35 women as they returned from a wedding in the Sabuwa district on Thursday night.
Nasiru Muaz, the state's internal security commissioner, reported a larger total, stating more than 50 persons were kidnapped on their way back to Damari village after accompanying the bride to the groom's home.
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"Officials visited the village and were told that 53 people were taken," stated the official.
"It was quite dangerous for a convoy carrying a bride to drive in the dark in such a bandit-infested area while singing and ululating.
"The bandits seized that opportunity and took them away," he said.
The commissioner warned citizens to avoid traveling at night and stated that security personnel attempted to locate and rescue the victims.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu took office last year on the promise of addressing Nigeria's security challenges.
The country is dealing with Islamists in the northeast, criminal militias in the northwest, and a resurgence of inter-communal conflict in central provinces.
