India, April 11 -- An army general and several soldiers were killed during an attempt to raid a military base in northeastern Nigeria, officials said.

The attack occurred in Benisheikh in Borno State, army spokesman Michael Onoja said in a statement, but it was repelled.

Onoja described the assailants as "terrorists", which is the term the military uses to describe members of Islamic militant groups in the northeast of the country.

President Bola Tinubu confirmed that a general was killed in the attack. "The insurgents' counterattack is a sign of desperation," he said in a statement. "I extend my condolences to the families of our gallant soldiers, led by Brigadier General Oseni Omoh Braimah, who made the ultimate sacrifice in the defe...