The Nigerian military killed two gunmen and arrested five others in a recent encounter with members of a rebel group in the southern Delta state, authorities said.
Gunmen from the Indigenous People of Biafra, a separatist group active in southern Nigeria, on Monday attacked a community in the Fuji area of Asaba city, the state capital of Delta, army spokesperson Onyema Nwachukwu said in a statement late Tuesday.
The gunmen “succumbed to the overwhelming firepower” of local army troops dispatched to the community. Two gunmen were killed and others fled the scene, Nwachukwu said.
The troops trailed the fleeing gunmen to their enclave, where five of them were nabbed, he said.
Nigeria, the most populous African country, has been troubled by security incidents, including kidnappings, banditry and extremist attacks.
