Tunisia: Police and terrorists shoot out, 52 people killed

((Baonghean.vn) – On March 7, the Tunisian government said that a gunfight occurred in Ben Guerdane, near the border with Libya, between security forces and terrorists, killing 52 people, including at least 35 terrorists, 10 security force personnel and 7 civilians.

Tunisian security forces during a shootout with terrorists in Ben Guerdane on the morning of March 7. Photo: AFP

Terrorists attacked security forces buildings in the southeastern Tunisian city of Ben Guerdane. According to Wataniya TV, the terrorists targeted the national police station and military barracks. Interior Minister Yasser Mosbah later announced that the situation was under control.

In a joint statement from the Interior and Defense Ministries, the attack left six gendarmes, two police officers, one soldier and one marine dead. So far, the civilian casualty toll stands at seven.

According to initial information, the authorities killed 21 terrorists and arrested 6. However, a Reuters reporter said, "there were 60 to 70 terrorists who carried out the attack in Ben Guerdane".

By late morning on 7 March, a curfew had been imposed from 7pm to 5am on 8 March. The Ras Jedirr border crossing was closed indefinitely. The Interior Ministry urged the people of Ben Guerdane to stay indoors and closed schools.

Immediately after the attack, in a televised speech, Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi declared:

“This is an unprecedented coordinated attack. The terrorists’ goal in carrying out the attack was to take control of an area in order to declare a new province… Tunisia is at war against barbarism and we will destroy the worms that are destroying the country.”

Since the terrorist attacks in Tunisia in 2015, the Tunisian government has closed its border and increased air and ground patrols with Libya – a country that is in turmoil due to civil war as well as the presence of IS jihadists.

Chu Thanh

(according to Le Figaro, Le Parisien)