ABUJA, April 5 (Xinhua) -- Twenty-one bandits were confirmed killed following a gunfight with troops in Nigeria's northwestern state of Zamfara, an army spokesman said Thursday.

Two army personnel were also killed during the gunfight at Anka area of the northern state on Wednesday, said Texas Chukwu, the army spokesman.

He told reporters in Gusau, the state capital, that a large number of bandits fled the scene with bullet wounds.

A local source told Xinhua that the bandits had laid an ambush for the troops engaged in a clearance operation in the state.

Last month, Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari had ordered the deployment of more troops to Zamfara to curtail increasing attacks and mass killing of locals by bandits since last year.