According to a statement signed by Sector 3's Deputy Director of Army Public Relations, Colonel Ezindu Idimah, the terrorists were attempting to attack troops location around 6pm when they were discovered during a routine defence patrol.

"The insurgents who came in their numbers met their waterloo as the gallant troops proved to be hard nut for them to crack.

"The terrorists were mercilessly trashed due to the superior fire power, courage and discipline displayed by own troops in conjunction with the Air Task Force.

"Many of them were neutralised while several others escaped with gunshot wounds. Various weapons and ammunition were recovered from the terrorists," the statement read.

Colonel Idimah also disclosed that three soldiers were wounded during the encounter but are receiving medical treatment at 7 Division Hospital in Maiduguri, the state capital.

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) also disclosed that its Air Task Force (ATF) of Operation Lafiya Dole destroyed a logistics base belonging to the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP), a Boko Haram faction, near Arege in the northern part of Borno on Saturday.

"The Alpha Jet's bomb strikes scored direct hits on the target location, totally destroying the vehicles and other logistics items, thereby further degrading the terrorists' capabilities," read an official statement.

Since Boko Haram's insurgency escalated in 2009, it has killed over 27,000 people and displaced millions in the northeast region, with its operations also extending to border countries like Cameroon, Chad and Niger.