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Gunmen in Western Tunisia Attack Top Official’s Home Gunmen in West Tunisia Attack Interior Minister’s Home, Killing 4 Guards
(about 4 hours later)
LONDON — Gunmen in western Tunisia attacked the family home of Interior Minister Lotfi Ben Jeddou in the early hours of Wednesday, officials there reported, killing four guards in one of the most brazen assaults by Islamist militants to hit the country in months.LONDON — Gunmen in western Tunisia attacked the family home of Interior Minister Lotfi Ben Jeddou in the early hours of Wednesday, officials there reported, killing four guards in one of the most brazen assaults by Islamist militants to hit the country in months.
Tunisia has grappled with a small guerrilla movement lodged in its western mountains along the border with Algeria since the popular uprising that overthrew President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali in 2011. The fighters, which include Algerians and Tunisians, have been involved in assaults on military and police forces around the country and were suspected to be the likely culprits behind the attack on Wednesday, although no group claimed responsibility immediately. Tunisia has grappled with a small guerrilla movement lodged in its western mountains along the border with Algeria since the popular uprising that overthrew President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali in 2011. The fighters, who include Algerians and Tunisians, have been involved in assaults on military and police forces around the country. They were suspected to be the likely culprits behind the attack on Wednesday, although no group immediately claimed responsibility.
Tunisian security forces have been conducting operations for months, including an intensive four-week sweep in March in the mountains with the help of increased intelligence cooperation fromAlgeria on the border and counterterrorism assistance and special forces training from the United States. The military destroyed two guerrilla camps and disrupted important cells of militant extremists, a military spokesman, Senior Col. Tawfiq Rahmouni, said in an interview last week. Tunisian security forces have been conducting operations for months, including an intensive four-week sweep in March in the mountains with the help of increased intelligence cooperation from Algeria on the border and counterterrorism assistance and special forces training from the United States. The military destroyed two guerrilla camps and disrupted important cells of militant extremists, a military spokesman, Senior Col. Tawfiq Rahmouni, said in an interview last week.
Yet some militants escaped and remain active laying mines, he said. “They fled and did not want to confront us,” he said. Often cells and weapons found in raids in Tunisia’s towns have been linked to attacks on the army, he said. Yet some militants escaped and remain active laying mines, he said. “They fled and did not want to confront us,” he said. Often cells and weapons found in raids in Tunisian towns have been linked to attacks on the army, he said.
The group that attacked on Wednesday included six or seven masked gunmen, the Interior Ministry spokesman, Mohammed Ali Aroui, said.The group that attacked on Wednesday included six or seven masked gunmen, the Interior Ministry spokesman, Mohammed Ali Aroui, said.
According to accounts on Tunisian radio, the assailants drove up in a pickup truck and aimed bursts of automatic gunfire at the guards to the interior minister’s family home. A 45-minute firefight ensued, and four guards were killed and three wounded before the attackers escaped. The minister was not there but his family was inside. None of his relatives were reported harmed. According to accounts on Tunisian radio, the assailants drove up in a pickup truck and aimed bursts of automatic gunfire at the guards of the interior minister’s family home. A 45-minute firefight ensued, and four guards were killed and three wounded before the attackers escaped. The minister was not there, but his family was inside. None of his relatives were reported harmed.
Mr. Jeddou, a former judge, has led a tough campaign against Ansar al-Sharia, which was classified as a terrorist group by the Tunisian government last August. Mr. Jeddou, a former judge, has led a tough campaign against Ansar al-Shariah, which the Tunisian government classified as a terrorist group in August.
The group was formed shortly after the 2011 revolution by a senior lieutenant of Osama bin Laden named Seifallah Ben Hassine, known by his nom de guerre, Abu Ayadh, upon his release from prison. The group attracted thousands of young followers with its preaching and charitable actions but was soon implicated in violence, in particular an attack on the United States Embassy in September 2012 following the fatal assault on the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya. Shortly after the 2011 revolution, the group was formed by a senior lieutenant of Osama bin Laden named Seifallah Ben Hassine, known by his nom de guerre, Abu Ayadh, upon his release from prison. The group attracted thousands of young followers with its preaching and charitable actions but was soon implicated in violence, in particular an attack on the United States Embassy in September 2012 after the fatal assault on the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya.
The Islamist-led government of Tunisia tried to engage Abu Ayadh and his organization in political dialogue but concluded that the group was intractable in its rejection of the democratic process, said Samir Dilou, the former minister of transitional justice. Abu Ayadh is a fugitive and is thought to be in Libya.The Islamist-led government of Tunisia tried to engage Abu Ayadh and his organization in political dialogue but concluded that the group was intractable in its rejection of the democratic process, said Samir Dilou, the former minister of transitional justice. Abu Ayadh is a fugitive and is thought to be in Libya.