YAOUNDE, March 19 (Xinhua) -- Seventeen people were killed after a Sudanese drone strike hit the Chadian border town of Tine Djagaraba, Chad's Minister of Communication and Government Spokesman Gassim Cherif Mahamat said in a statement early Thursday.

Several others were also wounded in the attack that took place on Wednesday, the spokesman said.

"Despite firm warnings addressed to the various belligerents in the Sudanese conflict and the closure of the border between the two countries, the locality of Tine Djagaraba on Chadian territory was, once again, the target of a drone attack," he said.

The government has reinforced the posture of its defense and security forces, which stand ready to exercise the right of pursuit on Sudanese territory, in strict compliance with the rules of international law, Mahamat said.

Local media reported that most of those who died were mourners at a funeral.

On Wednesday night, Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno convened an emergency security meeting following the deadly drone attack and ordered the "complete closure" of the border, according to a statement issued by the Chadian presidency.

The president ordered the National Army to retaliate against any attack originating from Sudan.

Chad shares a 1,300-km porous border with Sudan, which has been engulfed in conflict since 2023, when fighting broke out between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.