(CNN) -- At least two Americans, two Frenchmen and one Canadian were kidnapped early Monday by an armed group that raided an oil rig off the Nigerian coast.
Two crew members are in stable condition at a shore-based clinic, where they were airlifted after being wounded in the leg. The fate of the rest of those involved is not known.
The rig off the southern coast of Nigeria at Okoro field is run by Transocean and owned by London-based Afren PLC, which detailed the hostages' nationalities and said that five were believed to have been kidnapped.
State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley put the number of hostages at seven and confirmed that two are U.S. citizens.
"We (are), of course, concerned about their safety and hope for their immediate release," he said. "We are working with Nigerian authorities ... to pursue their prompt release, and there's an investigation already under way".
Drilling operations in the Okoro field have been temporarily suspended, both companies said.
In a news release, Afren said a "security breach" occurred soon after its "High Island VII jackup rig" arrived but before drilling had commenced.
CNN
