ABUJA - One army officer and 10 soldiers were killed in Nigeria's Benue state in what a spokesman said was an unprovoked attack on Thursday.

The army said in a statement that it would "fish out and deal decisively with these bad elements."

Civilians, in fear of soldiers looking to root out the perpetrators, were fleeing the Konshisha local government where one local leader's house had been burnt to the ground, sources told Reuters.