19 killed in attack on Tunis museum
Tourists getting off buses in the Tunisian capital fired on by gunmen
TUNIS, Tunisia — Foreign tourists scrambled in panic Wednesday after militants stormed a museum in Tunisia’s capital and killed 19 people, “shooting at anything that moved,” a witness said.
Two gunmen were slain by security forces following the deadliest attack on civilians in the North African country in 13 years, and the president said the young democracy was embroiled in a war with terror.
The militants, who wore military-style uniforms and wielded assault rifles, burst from a vehicle and began gunning down tourists climbing out of buses at the National Bardo Museum. The attackers then charged inside to take hostages before being killed in a firefight with security forces.
Authorities launched a manhunt for two or three accomplices in the attack. Prime Minister Habib Essid said the two Tunisian gunmen killed 17 tourists — five from Japan, four from Italy, two from Colombia, two from Spain, and one each from Australia, Poland and France. The nationality of one dead foreigner was not released. Essid said two Tunisian nationals also were killed by the militants.
At least 44 people were wounded, including tourists from Italy, France, Japan, South Africa, Poland, Belgium and Russia, according to Essid and doctors from Tunis’ Charles Nicolle.
“I want the people of Tunisia to understand firstly and lastly that we are in a war with terror, and these savage minority groups will not frighten us,” said newly elected President Beji Caid Essebsi in an evening address to the nation. “The fight against them will continue until they are exterminated.”
Tunisians overthrew their dictator in 2011 and kicked off the Arab Spring that spread across the region. While the uprising built a new democracy, the country has also struggled with economic problems and attacks by extremists.
Essid identified the slain gunmen as Yassine Laabidi and Hatem Khachnaoui.
Twitter accounts associated with the extremist Islamic State group based in Syria and Iraq were described as overjoyed at the attack, urging Tunisians to “follow their brothers,” said Rita Katz of SITE, a U.S.-based organization that monitors militant groups.
The assault at the Bardo, Tunisia’s largest museum that is housed in a 15th-century palace, began sometime after noon local time as scores of European tourists were visiting.
Josep Lluis Cusido, the mayor of the Spanish town of Vallmoll, said he saw people being gunned down on the plaza outside the museum before the gunmen moved inside.
“After they entered the museum, I saw their faces: They were about 10 metres away from me, shooting at anything that moved,” Cusido told Spain’s Cadena Ser radio station.
“I managed to hide behind a pillar, there were unlucky people who they killed right there,” he said, adding that he and his wife spent nearly three hours in the museum until they got out uninjured.
Dozens of tourists scrambled from the museum linking arms or clutching children as Tunisian police and security forces pointed their weapons at the building. The museum, four kilometres from the city centre, is located near the national parliament building, which was evacuated.
The Bardo, a popular tourist attraction, houses one of the world’s largest collections of Roman mosaics among its 8,000 works.