Officials in Italy say suspected Boko Haram gunmen have kidnapped two Italian priests and a Canadian nun in northern Cameroon.
Authorities say the abduction happened during the night between Friday and Saturday near the Nigerian border.
Witnesses say the armed men pulled up to the parish overnight Friday, ransacked the place and abducted the three, who were working as missionaries.
The parish is near the northeastern Nigeria region that serves as a base for Boko Haram, an Islamist militant group blamed for a string of violent attacks.
Kidnappings of Westerners have become common in the remote and sparsely populated region, where borders between countries are porous.
The priests abducted overnight were identified as Giampaolo Marta and Gianantonio Allegri from the Vicenza diocese in northeastern Italy.
The identity of the nun was not immediately clear.
A Vatican spokesman said Saturday that Pope Francis was praying for the three and "expressed hope for a solution."
There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the kidnappings which took place in a remote area.
Some information for this report comes from AP and AFP.
Authorities say the abduction happened during the night between Friday and Saturday near the Nigerian border.
Witnesses say the armed men pulled up to the parish overnight Friday, ransacked the place and abducted the three, who were working as missionaries.
The parish is near the northeastern Nigeria region that serves as a base for Boko Haram, an Islamist militant group blamed for a string of violent attacks.
Kidnappings of Westerners have become common in the remote and sparsely populated region, where borders between countries are porous.
The priests abducted overnight were identified as Giampaolo Marta and Gianantonio Allegri from the Vicenza diocese in northeastern Italy.
The identity of the nun was not immediately clear.
A Vatican spokesman said Saturday that Pope Francis was praying for the three and "expressed hope for a solution."
There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the kidnappings which took place in a remote area.
Some information for this report comes from AP and AFP.
