A search and rescue effort has been started by police in northwest Nigeria to find two female students who have been kidnapped from a university dorm in Zamfara state.

They said that an armed gang broke into the exclusive Gusau hostel and imprisoned two guards before robbing the students.

Fears of instability in Zamfara, which has previously experienced multiple kidnappings for ransom, have increased as a result of the occurrence.

Gunmen kidnapped around 300 female students from a boarding school in Zamfara in February of last year.

After being held captive for a few days, they were freed. Four staff members and fifteen students from an agriculture college were taken into custody on August 15.