The pair are understood to have been taken while visiting the Virunga National Park, a renowned gorilla sanctuary in the east of the African country today.
KIDNAPPERS are demanding a £150,000 ransom for the release of two British citizens kidnapped in the Democratic Republic of Congo, it has been reported.
The pair were snatched along with their driver by armed men who also shot dead a female park ranger in Virunga National Park, a famous gorilla sanctuary .
According to ITV Africa Correspondent John Ray, a £150,000 demand was made by local bandits, though it's not clear which group they belong to.
A female park ranger travelling with the pair was killed, according to local media reports.
Park spokesman Joel Wengamula said: "We can confirm the attack, but are waiting for more details.
He added the attack occurred at around 10am, and "police and soldiers are at the scene".
A spokesperson for the Foreign & Commonwealth Office said: "We are in close contact with the authorities in Democratic Republic of the Congo following an incident involving two British nationals, and our staff are providing support to their families."
Virunga National Park is located in the Congo's unstable North Kivu province.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office website advises against all travel to the province, saying "there has been a series of kidnappings in North Kivu in the area around Goma in addition to military operations against armed groups."
It recommends that those who do travel to North Kivu "should be especially vigilant, consider travelling in convoy on trips outside Goma and Bukavu and avoid making any journeys that would involve travel after dark.
The park has seen rising violence in recent months as armed groups stage raids to steal resources, particularly charcoal.
Last month five young rangers and a driver were killed in a militia ambush, the park said.
It was the deadliest attack in recent years and took the total number of rangers killed to 175.
Virunga is a Unesco world heritage site, covering 3,000 square miles on the Democratic Republic of Congo's border with Uganda and Rwanda.
Founded in 1925, it is home to to around a quarter of the world's critically endangered mountain gorillas and other endangered species as well as lions, elephants, hippos and a host of rare bird species.
Last year, a fifth of the park's southern sector was deforested owing to illegal charcoal production, the park said.
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