Gunmen have abducted 14 Eritrean asylum seekers in eastern Sudan, said United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

"Based on information from the Sudanese authorities, gunmen attacked a UNHCR convoy transporting 49 asylum seekers to a refugee camp and abducted 14 of them," said Nicolas Brass, UNHCR spokesman in a statement.

"The authorities informed us with the kidnapping of a number of Eritrean asylum seekers on the road between Kassala town and Shegarab refugee camp," he noted.

Six of the kidnapped were minors, including two girls, in addition to eight women, said the UNHCR.