The peacekeeping soldiers were responding to a distress call during fighting between two communities over a land dispute. A few arrests have been made following the ambush of the troops.

Sixteen soldiers were killed during a mission to halt clashes between two communities in Nigeria's southern state of Delta, an army spokesman said Saturday.

The attack in the oil-rich region happened in the Bomadi council area Thursday when the soldiers, deployed to keep the peace, "were surrounded by some community youths and killed," Defense Headquarters spokesman Brigadier General Tukur Gusau said in a statement.

Among the dead were a commanding officer, two majors, one captain and 12 soldiers, Gusau added.

He said the soldiers, from the 181 Amphibious Battalion, had "responded to a distress call" following trouble between the Okuama and Okoloba communities.

Frequent clashes over land ownership

According to local media reports, the two communities have clashed repeatedly over land ownership in recent weeks, leaving several people dead. One man was abducted during that fighting, with the Nigerian military unable to get the man released.

An investigation has been opened and several arrests have been made in relation to the Thursday's ambush on the Nigerian soldiers.

"So far, a few arrests have been made while steps [are] in place to unravel the motive behind the attack," Gusau added.

Nigerian soldiers are mostly deployed on special security operations across the West African country.

But they are sometimes sent to resolve conflict in communities, especially areas with an inadequate security presence or where clashes are common.

The fighting, sometimes deadly, is often over land or compensation for oil spills by energy companies in many Delta state communities.

mm/wd (AFP, AP, Reuters)