Three soldiers are said to have died when troops of Operation Lafiya Dole averted a Boko Haram attack on Molai village in Borno State.

The troops engaged the insurgents in a gunfight on Wednesday night in Mammanti, a deserted village near Maiduguri, the state capital.

The insurgents who came in large numbers were on their way to attack Molai, a settlement barely two kilometres away from the capital city before the gun duel broke out.

Molai residents were thrown in panic as sounds of explosions and ammunitions in the dead of the night were heard even in some parts of Maiduguri where the people found them disturbing.

Soldiers around Mammanti who had been on red alert had, however, faced the assailants squarely, foiling their plans to infiltrate Molai village or go beyond.

The gunbattle which begun at about 10pm is said to have lasted till 2:30am on Thursday when the last gunshot was heard.

It is not clear how many casualties were recorded on the side of insurgents, but military sources confirmed that three soldiers were killed in the battle.