Nigeria's military claims it has killed scores of Boko Haram militants in the Sambisa forest

AFP reports that 20 women and children were also rescued during the operation overnight.

A defence ministry statement said, "despite continuous encounter with large number of land mines which still litter the Sambisa forest, troops have forged ahead," adding that 'scores' had been killed as part of Friday's operation.

One solider was reportedly killed, and 10 more injured during the assault. However the military claims have not been independently verified.

The area is notorious as the location where hundreds of schoolgirls were taken after the mass kidnapping last year.