KADUNA, Nigeria — Suspected bandits attacked a passenger train headed to a northern Nigerian city from the capital Abuja Monday evening after they trapped the train, officials said.

The bandits are reported to have abducted an unknown number of passengers from the train in the Kaduna state. The gang mined the track between Abuja and Kaduna city and forced the evening train to a halt.

Many of the nearly 1000 passengers on board took shelter as shots were fired. One man is reported to have been killed after the gunmen boarded the train.

One passenger, Anas Iro Danmusa, posted on Facebook that bandits planted explosives which halted the train. He said bandits were trying to force themselves inside the train and gunshots were being fired outside the train.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

The security forces have intervened and taken those injured to hospital.

“The military has secured the Kaduna-bound train from Abuja trapped by terrorists,” a spokesperson for Kaduna state government said. “Efforts are ongoing to convey the passengers from the location and others that sustained injuries have been rushed to hospitals for urgent medical attention.”

The train was stopped about 25 kilometers to Kaduna when the attack happened, an official of the Nigerian Railways Corp (NRC) said, adding that a family relative was also trapped on the Kaduna-bound service.

Following increased attacks and kidnappings on the main road between Abuja and Kaduna, many travelers now prefer to travel by train.

This is the second time the railway has been attacked in the last six months.

Kidnapping for ransom has become commonplace in northern Nigeria and the bandits, as they are known locally, are becoming increasingly bold.

On Saturday they attacked Kaduna's international airport. — Agencies