Nigerian police on Saturday confirmed eight policemen and three members of the government-backed Civilian Joint Task Force killed when Boko Haram group ambushed a convoy of vehicles in which government officials were driven in the northeastern state of Borno.

The attack near Monguno town in the restive northeastern state occurred on Friday while the officials were on their way to Baga town where hundreds of returning Internally Displaced Persons were to be received.

Borno police spokesman Edet Okon told reporters in the state capital, Maiduguri, that 13 others sustained various degrees of injuries following the incident.

The security team, including soldiers, was deployed to provide escort to the local officials.

The attack on Friday was the second of its kind in the northern state, stirring great concern. The Monguno area in Borno is believed to be dangerous and has witnessed a series of abductions by the terrorist group in the past.

Earlier, local media reported at least 15 Nigerian security personnel including eight policemen, three soldiers, and four Civilian Joint Task Force personnel killed in the attack.

Channels Television, a local broadcaster, also reported that an armored personnel carrier belonging to the police, as well as state government vehicles, were hijacked in the attack.

Boko Haram has been trying to establish an Islamist state in northeastern Nigeria since 2009, extending its attacks to countries in the Lake Chad Basin.

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