Attack stokes instability fears in North Africa

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CAIRO — Gunmen opened fire on visitors at + Tunisia’s most renowned museum on Wednesday, killing at least 19 people, + including 17 foreigners, in an assault that threatened to upset the fragile + stability of a country seen as the lone success of the Arab Spring.

It was the most deadly terrorist attack in the North African nation in + more than a decade. Although no group claimed responsibility, the bloodshed + raised fears that militants linked to the Islamic State were expanding + their operations.

The attackers, clad in military uniforms, stormed the Bardo National Museum on + Wednesday afternoon, seizing and gunning down foreign tourists before security + forces raided the building to end the siege. The museum is a major tourist + draw and is near the heavily guarded national parliament in downtown Tunis.

Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid said that in addition to the slain + foreigners — from Italy, Poland, Germany and Spain — a local museum worker + and a security official were killed. Two gunmen died, and three others + may have escaped, officials said. About 50 other people were wounded, according + to local news reports.

“Our nation is in danger,” Essid declared in a televised address Wednesday + evening. He vowed that the country would be “merciless” in defending itself.

[Read: Why Tunisia, Arab Spring’s sole success story, suffers from Islamist violence] +

Tunisia, a mostly Muslim nation of about 11 million people, was governed + for decades by autocrats who imposed secularism. Its sun-drenched Mediterranean + beaches drew thousands of bikini-clad tourists, and its governments promoted + education and other rights for women. But the country has grappled with + rising Islamist militancy since a popular uprising overthrew its dictator + four years ago, setting the stage for the Arab Spring revolts across the + region.

Thousands of Tunisians have flocked to join jihadist groups in Syria, + including the Islamic State, making the country one of the major sources + of foreign fighters in the conflict. Tunisian security forces have also + fought increasing gunbattles with jihadists at home.

Despite this, the country has been hailed as a model of democratic transition + as other governments that came to power after the Arab Spring collapsed, + often in bloody confrontations. But the attack Wednesday — on a national + landmark that showcases Tunisia’s rich heritage — could heighten tensions + in a nation that has become deeply divided between pro- and anti-Islamist + political factions.

Many Tunisians accuse the country’s political Islamists, who held power + from 2011 to 2013, of having been slow to respond to the growing danger + of terrorism. Islamist politicians have acknowledged that they did not + realize the threat that would develop when radical Muslims, who had been + repressed under authoritarian regimes, won the freedom to preach freely + in mosques.

In Washington, White House press secretary Josh Earnest condemned the attack and + said the U.S. government was willing to assist Tunisian authorities in + the investigation.

+ +

Gunmen in military uniforms stormed Tunisia's national museum, killing at least 19 people, most of them foreign tourists. (Reuters) +

“This attack today is meant to threaten authorities, to frighten tourists + and to negatively affect the economy,” said Lotfi Azzouz, Tunisia country + director for Amnesty International, a London-based rights group.

Tourism is critical to Tunisia’s economy, accounting for 15 percent of + its gross domestic product in 2013, according to the World Travel and Tourism + Council, an industry body. The Bardo museum hosts one of the world’s most + outstanding collections of Roman mosaics and is popular with tourists and + Tunisians alike.

[Bardo museum houses amazing Roman treasures] +

The attack is “also aimed at the country’s security and stability during + the transition period,” Azzouz said. “And it could have political repercussions + — like the curtailing of human rights, or even less government transparency + if there’s fear of further attacks.”

The attack raised concerns that the government, led by secularists, would + be pressured to stage a wider crackdown on Islamists of all stripes. Lawmakers + are drafting an anti-terrorism bill to give security forces additional + tools to fight militants.

+ +

[Read: Tunisia sends most foreign fighters to Islamic State in Syria] +

“We must pay attention to what is written” in that law, Azzouz said. “There + is worry the government will use the attack to justify some draconian measures.”

Tunisian Islamists and secular forces have worked together — often reluctantly + — to defuse the country’s political crises in the years since the revolt.

Last fall, Tunisians elected a secular-minded president and parliament + dominated by liberal forces after souring on Islamist-led rule. + In 2011, voters had elected a government led by the Ennahda party — a movement + similar to Egypt’s Islamist Muslim Brotherhood. But a political stalemate + developed as the party and others tried to draft the country’s new constitution. + The Islamists failed to improve a slumping economy. And Ennahda came under + fire for what many Tunisians saw as a failure to crack down on Islamist + extremists.

Map: Flow of foreign fighters to Syria +

After the collapse of the authoritarian system in 2011, hard-line Muslims + known as Salafists attacked bars and art galleries. Then, in 2012, hundreds + of Islamists assaulted the U.S. Embassy in + Tunis, shattering windows and hurling gasoline bombs, after the release + of a crude online video about the prophet Muhammad. The + government outlawed the group behind the attack — Ansar al-Sharia, an al-Qaeda-linked + organization — and began a crackdown. But the killing of two leftist politicians in + 2013 prompted a fresh political crisis, and Ennahda stepped down, replaced + by a technocratic government.

Tunisia’s current coalition government includes + an Ennahda minister in the cabinet. Still, many leftist figures openly + oppose collaboration with the movement’s leaders.

“Ennahda is responsible for the current deterioration of the situation, + because they were careless with the extremists” while they were in power, + Azzouz said.

The leader of Ennahda, Rachid Ghannouchi, condemned Wednesday’s attack, + saying in a statement that it “will not break our people’s will and will + not undermine our revolution and our democracy.”

Security officials are particularly concerned by the collapse of Libya, + where various armed groups are vying for influence and jihadist militants + have entrenched themselves in major cities. Tunisians worry that extremists + can easily get arms and training in the neighboring country.

In January, Libyan militants loyal to the Islamic State beheaded 21 Christians — + 20 of them Egyptian Copts — along the country’s coast. They later seized + the Libyan city of Sirte.

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+

Officials are worried about the number of Tunisian militants who may have + joined the jihadists in Libya — with the goal of returning home to fight + the Tunis government.

Ajmi Lourimi, a member of Ennahda’s general secretariat, said he believed + the attack would unite Tunisians in the face of terrorism.

“There is a consensus here that this [attack] is alien to our culture, + to our way of life. We want to unify against this danger,” Lourimi said. + He said he did not expect a wider government campaign against Islamists.

“We have nothing to fear,” he said of himself and fellow Ennahda members. + “We believe the Interior Ministry should be trained and equipped to fight + and counter this militancy.”

The last major attack on a civilian target in Tunisia was in 2002, when + al-Qaeda militants killed more than 20 people in a car bombing outside + a synagogue in the city of Djerba.

+ +

Heba Habib contributed to this report.

+ + + +

Tunisia sends most foreign fighters to Islamic State in Syria +

Tunisia’s Bardo museum is home to amazing Roman treasures +

+ +

By Erin Cunningham + March 18 at 3:57 PM + + + Follow @erinmcunningham +

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“Our nation is in danger,” Essid declared in a televised address Wednesday + evening. He vowed that the country would be “merciless” in defending itself.

[Read: Why Tunisia, Arab Spring’s sole success story, suffers from Islamist violence] +

In Washington, White House press secretary Josh Earnest condemned the attack and + said the U.S. government was willing to assist Tunisian authorities in + the investigation.

+ +

Gunmen in military uniforms stormed Tunisia's national museum, killing at least 19 people, most of them foreign tourists. (Reuters) +

[Bardo museum houses amazing Roman treasures] +

+ + + + +

+ + +

+ +

[Read: Tunisia sends most foreign fighters to Islamic State in Syria] +

“We must pay attention to what is written” in that law, Azzouz said. “There + is worry the government will use the attack to justify some draconian measures.”

Tunisian Islamists and secular forces have worked together — often reluctantly + — to defuse the country’s political crises in the years since the revolt.

+ Map: Flow of foreign fighters to Syria + + View Graphic + + +

Map: Flow of foreign fighters to Syria +

Tunisia’s current coalition government includes + an Ennahda minister in the cabinet. Still, many leftist figures openly + oppose collaboration with the movement’s leaders.

“Ennahda is responsible for the current deterioration of the situation, + because they were careless with the extremists” while they were in power, + Azzouz said.

In January, Libyan militants loyal to the Islamic State beheaded 21 Christians — + 20 of them Egyptian Copts — along the country’s coast. They later seized + the Libyan city of Sirte.

+
+

Officials are worried about the number of Tunisian militants who may have + joined the jihadists in Libya — with the goal of returning home to fight + the Tunis government.

Ajmi Lourimi, a member of Ennahda’s general secretariat, said he believed + the attack would unite Tunisians in the face of terrorism.

“We have nothing to fear,” he said of himself and fellow Ennahda members. + “We believe the Interior Ministry should be trained and equipped to fight + and counter this militancy.”

The last major attack on a civilian target in Tunisia was in 2002, when + al-Qaeda militants killed more than 20 people in a car bombing outside + a synagogue in the city of Djerba.

Heba Habib contributed to this report.

Tunisia sends most foreign fighters to Islamic State in Syria +

Tunisia’s Bardo museum is home to amazing Roman treasures +

Erin Cunningham is an Egypt-based correspondent for The Post. She previously + covered conflicts in the Middle East and Afghanistan for the Christian + Science Monitor, GlobalPost and The National.

Attack stokes instability fears in North Africa

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