LONDON (BBC News) -- Nigerian soldiers have burnt hundreds of slum houses near where a soldier was killed during the kidnapping of foreign oil workers, residents say.

Residents in the city of Port Harcourt say the troops became angry when they learned one of their colleagues had been killed in a shootout.

Hundreds fled with their belongings as the fire spread through the slum area.

The army, which is pursuing militants in the Niger Delta, blamed the fires on militants disguised as soldiers.

At least three foreigners were abducted by gunmen from a bar close to the offices of a subsidiary of the Italian oil company, Eni, on Thursday night, near where the slums were burnt.

During the kidnapping, a soldier protecting the workers was shot and killed.

Surprised

Residents say the soldiers then poured petrol onto their houses and set them on fire, accusing the community of sheltering militants.

A local pastor denied militants had been hiding in the area.

"The people who attacked came from the water, they do not stay here," he told the BBC's Focus on Africa program.

"I have nowhere to stay. My church, my house, most of my documents are burnt," he said.

There are no reports of any deaths but one man had to go to hospital with burns, the pastor said.

Regional army spokesman Maj Sajir Musa denied the army had burnt the houses.

"It was the militants who disguised [themselves] in army uniform and set the places ablaze in an attempt to tarnish the image of the Nigerian army soldiers," he said.

"They have done that in response to our constructive efforts to get rid of armed robbers and hostage-takers."