26 Soilders Killed in Ambush in Nigeria

In a late-night assault by gunmen in central Nigeria, at least 26 members of the Nigerian security forces were murdered and eight others were injured, according to two military sources.

A helicopter that was rescuing the injured crashed on Monday morning in the region where the army is battling criminal organizations, according to an air force official, who did not say if the crew and passengers survived.

Because they were not authorized to speak about the event and military officials were unavailable for comment, the two military officers begged to remain anonymous.

"We lost 23 soldiers, including three officers, and three Civilians JTF (vigilantes) in the encounter while eight soldiers were injured," said the first source, following "a serious fight" along the Zungeru-Tegina highway.

A second officer gave the same toll and said the bandits also suffered "heavy casualties". 

Additionally, he said that a chopper sent by the air force to remove the casualties—which included 11 dead and seven injured—had lost contact.

He said that 11 of the deceased and 7 of the injured were aboard the chopper. He continued by saying that "bandits" had shot at the plane, causing it to crash.

The Mi-171 helicopter, which was on a "casualty evacuation mission" when it crashed on Monday after taking off from Zungeru, according to a spokesman for the Nigerian air force.

"The aircraft had departed Zungeru Primary School enroute for Kaduna but was later discovered to have crashed near Chukuba Village in Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State," spokesman Edward Gabkwet said in a statement.

He said efforts were under way to rescue those aboard and that preliminary investigations had been opened into the cause of the crash.

In Africa's most populous country, hardly a week goes by without an attack or kidnapping carried out by thieves known as "bandits" in the northwest and center of the nation.

The gangs, who are known for kidnapping numerous students from schools, have camps in a huge forest that crosses the states of Niger, Kaduna, Zamfara, and Katsina.

Bandits have terrorized northwest and central Nigeria for years, raiding isolated areas where they kill and kidnap inhabitants for ransom and set homes on fire after robbing them.

The violence has been allowed to grow because there is impunity, inadequate security, and a larger government presence, according to analysts.