At least 19 people were killed in a suspected bandit ambush and livestock rustling operation in Bauchi state, northeast Nigeria, the police and residents said on Monday.

Bauchi police command said in a statement that the attack took place early on Sunday morning when a local security patrol in Gwana district was ambushed.

The police said civilians from a nearby village were also killed while attempting to flee the attack.

"A team of operational tactical teams was dispatched to the scene, where they recovered bodies of casualties," Bauchi police commissioner Sani-Omolori Aliyu said in the statement.

Gangs of heavily armed men, known locally as bandits, have wreaked havoc across northwest Nigeria in recent years, kidnapping thousands, killing hundreds and making it unsafe to travel by road or farm in some areas.

Ibrahim Hussaini, an eyewitness, said a gun battle ensued between the security team and the bandits which caused multiple fatalities among the vigilante team and some residents.

The attackers rustled a large number of cattle and sheep from the district after overpowering the local security team, Mohammed Umar, a vigilante from the Alkaleri local government area that includes Gwana, told Reuters by phone.

Reuters