KANO, Nigeria

Five of seven abducted Nigerian navy officers have been rescued, while two remain missing, according to officials on Wednesday.

The officers were abducted late on Tuesday in the southern state of Edo while traveling to the neighboring Delta State from Kaduna, where they were stationed, said a naval official, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

"They were on their way to Navy Engineering College, Sapele in Delta State," added the official.

Acting on an intelligence report, Edo police launched rescue efforts, with state police spokesman Kotongs Bello confirming the incident on Wednesday morning.

"We rescued five and two others are yet to be rescued. That is the one I am aware of," said Bello.

All efforts to contact the navy have so far proven fruitless.

In a separate incident, the so-called Islamic State in West Africa Province, a splinter group from the ISIS/Daesh-affiliated Boko Haram, recently released pictures of soldiers allegedly abducted in Yobe State in northwestern Nigeria.