Benin’s government has admitted that 54 soldiers were killed by suspected jihadists in the country’s north last week near the borders with Burkina Faso and Niger.
The authorities had previously said that only eight soldiers were killed.
The revised figure makes it the deadliest known attack since insurgents began operating in northern Benin at the beginning of the decade.
The attack has been claimed by an al-Qaeda-linked group – Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen, (Jnim), which is based in Mali but has in recent years expanded its operations to neighbouring countries.