Firing near religious place in Tunisia, four dead, many injured

Two security guards and two civilians were killed and 10 others injured in a shooting near a Jewish religious site on Tunisia’s Djerba island. According to media reports, a Navy soldier shot dead two associate security guards and two others on Tuesday. He wanted to reach a holy place in Djerba to make a pilgrimage. Among those killed were French and Tunisian civilians. However, it is not yet clear whether all the civilians killed were pilgrims. Those injured include six security agents and four civilians. The attacker was killed by the security forces.

Shrine closed

According to eyewitnesses, we heard gunshots. After this, an atmosphere of fear was created among all the people. People started running here and there to save their lives. However, the Tunisian Ministry of Interior confirmed that the shrine has been closed and secured. Police officials were informed that an assailant opened indiscriminate firing on people near the shrine. After this, the police who reached the spot fired upon the attacker and killed him.

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Terrorists also attacked a pilgrimage site on Djerba Island

The pilgrimage has been under tight security since al-Qaeda terrorists attacked the shrine with a truck bomb in 2002 and killed approximately 21 Western visitors. A predominantly Muslim country, Tunisia is also home to one of the largest Jewish communities (Yahudi) in North Africa as Jews have reportedly lived in Tunisia since Roman times.