Nigeria: Foreign nationals kidnapped in Port Harcourt, July 14

Event

Two foreign nationals were kidnapped by unidentified gunmen near Ndoki Street in Port Harcourt, July 14. Officials have launched an operation to free the victims. There have been no reports of ransom demands. The location of the victims is unknown.

Context

There is a high threat of kidnapping in Nigeria, including in Port Harcourt. Both locals and foreign nationals are regularly targeted in such incidents. Most kidnappings in Nigeria are financially motivated and conducted by criminal groups, of varying levels of sophistication. Militant and/or extremist groups also conduct kidnappings which may be ideologically or financially-motivated. Non-traditional kidnapping variants, such as express kidnapping and short-term extortion, which frequently occur in urban centers, pose additional security threats.

Foreign nationals are most frequently targeted in the country's oil-rich Niger Delta region including the Bayelsa, Rivers, Delta and Cross River States, where militant groups have used kidnapping as both a political tool and as a resource to fund their insurgent operations.

Kidnapping incidents within Nigeria are usually resolved without harm to the victim(s) through the payment of a ransom. However, victims may be subject to violence or the threat thereof, to expedite a ransom payment; particularly by unsophisticated criminals. Victims of ideologically motivated kidnappings have a face a higher threat of death and may experience longer captivity times.