The Nigerian military has denied reports that soldiers are missing after Boko Haram Islamist militants attacked a military base over the weekend.

An army spokesman said in a series of tweets that the reports had been blown out of proportion.

On Saturday evening a base in Yobe State, close to the border with Niger, was attacked by jihadists.

Local media in Nigeria is reporting that a convoy of vehicles painted in military colours drove into the base and after a firefight, hundreds of soldiers fled.