Thirty-seven people have died in an air strike in southern Niger, local officials say. They were attending a funeral ceremony in Abadam village on the border with Nigeria when an unidentified plane began dropping bombs.
The incident came as the Nigerian army said more than 300 militants were killed in nearby north-east Nigeria during operations targeting Boko Haram.
Two soldiers lost their lives and 10 more were wounded in Borno state.
Nigerian defence spokesman Chris Olukolade said that a number of Boko Haram fighters had been captured and weapons and equipment seized.
The number of militant deaths has not been independently verified. 'Three bombs'
A military official told AFP news agency that an air strike had hit a mosque in the village of Abadam. The deputy mayor of Abadam, Ibrahim Ari, told the BBC that a plane had dropped three bombs. One struck a group of mourners sitting in front of the residence of a local chief.
He added that more than 20 people had been injured during the incident. It is not yet clear who was responsible for the bombardment, but Nigeria has denied responsibility.
"It's not to my knowledge and there has not been any report from our people of such an incident," said Dele Alonge, a spokesman for Nigeria's air force. (BBC)
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