According to residents of Kukuwa-Gari in Yobe State who fled the area, most of the dead were villagers trying to flee by jumping into a nearby river. However the river was high due to recent rains and many of them died.

According to AFP, a local official put the death toll at 50 and the Director of Defense Information, Colonel Rabe Abubakar, was quoted by a local TV station saying reports of the incident were "untrue."

Colonel Sani Kukasheka Usman, acting director army public relations told DW that media reports of the killing were false and that the gunfight was a part of a Nigerian army operation.

"What they were referring to it was the ambush by our troops in that same village against Boko Haram in which five terrorists were killed," said Usman.

If the number of dead is confirmed then this incident represents the biggest loss of life since Muhammadu Buhari was sworn in as president at the end of May. He vowed to crush the Boko Haram insurgency and has made numerous military changes including increasing the number of troops patrolling the north of the country.

A massacre

Residents report that on August 13, around 17 fighters drove into town on motorcycles and started shooting. Locals claim that some of the fighters were from the area.

News of the attack took five days to emerge because the militants have destroyed telecommunications masts around the village, 50 kilometers (30 miles) from Damaturu, the capital of Yobe State.

"They had superior firepower because they were using modern guns while we were using hunting guns. We were out powered but they were outnumbered," Alhaji Kankana Sarkin-Baka, leader of a local group of hunters told AFP. He added that the fighters positioned themselves to block the only escape route leading many people to jump in the water.

Boko Haram fighters also reportedly shot and killed a local fisherman trying to pull people from the water.

Sarkin-Baka claims that his group of hunters killed 14 of the attackers, including the commander and his deputy, while three escaped.

Kukuwa-Gari resident Modu Balumi told AFP that his sister-in-law and two of his children were among several villagers still missing.

"Honestly, I am not happy with the way the military tried to deny that our village was attacked. Many of us who are yet to return have changed our minds about going back by this stance of the military," he said.

Continued confusion

Many Nigerians are happy that the army seems to be making some headway in their battle against Boko Haram.

"People are beginning to get relief seeing that the Nigerian military is becoming more vibrant in terms of curbing the insurgency. But suddenly this attack happens. I think this is very disheartening," said Jedida Solomon, a resident of Gombe in northern Nigeria.

Another resident of Gombe, Daniel Nyam Gwash, says he is confused that the army denies the attack.

"The people are claiming Boko Haram attacked that village while the military is saying no. We cannot really understand who is right and who is wrong," he said.

Security expert Lieutenant Colonel Umar Isa Gwani told DW that he believes the latest attack is a setback in a war the administration is winning.

"The situation has improved tremendously from what it used to be before the new administration, apart from a bomb blast or suicide bombing here or there," he said.

An army press release on Wednesday reported that they had engaged Boko Haram fighters in another part of the country but made no reference to the massacre in Kukuwa-Gari.

Muhammad al-Amin contributed to this article.