diff --git a/ns3 b/ns3
index 270f07c8d..296ca4375 100755
--- a/ns3
+++ b/ns3
@@ -430,7 +430,8 @@ def print_and_buffer(message):
 def remove_dir(dir_to_remove, dry_run, directory_qualifier=""):
     dir_to_remove = os.path.abspath(dir_to_remove)
     if os.path.exists(dir_to_remove):
-        if ".." in os.path.relpath(dir_to_remove, ns3_path):
+        if (".." in os.path.relpath(dir_to_remove, ns3_path)
+            or os.path.abspath(dir_to_remove) == os.path.abspath(ns3_path)):
             # In case the directory to remove isn't within
             # the current ns-3 directory, print an error
             # message for the dry-run case