A US special forces soldier trains a Nigerian soldier during Flintlock 2016, an American-led international training exercise with African militaries in Thies, Senegal, Feb. 11, 2016. Reuters / Sylvain Cherkaoui.

Islamic State (IS) killed 11 Nigerian soldiers in an attack on the northeastern town of Gajiganna, the group claimed through its news agency AMAQ on Saturday.

The jihadist organization said the attack on the soldiers took place in the town in northeastern Borno state on Friday. It published pictures of burned barracks and dead bodies it claimed belonged to the soldiers.

Three sources, including one hospital source, confirmed the attack. They said the militants stormed the town on a motorbike at roughly 6:30pm (1730 GMT) and opened fire on residents and the military in sporadic shootings.

The fighters fled after the military called in air force support and reinforcements from a battalion in a neighboring town.

Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) has carried out a string of attacks in Nigeria in recent months.

The group split in 2016 from Nigeria-based Boko Haram, which has waged a decade-long insurgency in northeast Nigeria that has killed some 30,000 people and displaced a further two million.