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The Tunisian authorities confirmed this Wednesday, May 10, that the number of people killed after the attack in the vicinity of the Ghriba synagogue, on the island of Djerba, which occurred a day earlier, increased to six. Among the deceased is the attacker, who was a member of the country’s National Guard. The Police are still investigating whether it was a terrorist attack or an isolated act.
A security agent who had been injured is the latest fatality confirmed by hospital sources, after an armed attack near the synagogue from Ghriba, in Tunisia.
The event was recorded on the night of Tuesday, May 9, around 7:30 p.m. and the country’s authorities are still investigating the causes.
It all started when a member of the Tunisian National Guard killed one of his companions to get the necessary clothing. Then he went to the synagogue, the oldest in Africa.
There, the man opened fire on the security guards of the compound and killed one of the agents, also two pilgrims, two cousins: Aviel Haddad, an Israeli-Tunisian, 30 years old, and Benjamin Haddad, 42 years old, of nationality French, and who was in the place to participate in the pilgrimage.
In addition, four civilians and four police officers were injured, including one critically. The attacker died in the confrontation with the authorities.
France and Israel express their “deep sadness” and condemn the attack
According to the former Tunisian tourism minister, René Trabelsi, who is also a figure in the Tunisian Jewish community and was present in the synagogue at the time of the assault, “without the rapid intervention of the security forces, a carnage would have had place”, since hundreds of visitors were present.
The pilgrimage to Africa’s oldest synagogue regularly draws hundreds of Jews from Europe and Israel to the Tunisian island of Djerba, where the religious site is located, some 500 kilometers from the country’s capital.
The French president. Emmanuel Macron, issued a message through his Twitter account in which he pointed out that this aggression shocked his government. “We think with pain of the victims, of the Tunisian people, our friends. We are with the family of our murdered compatriot. We will always, relentlessly, fight anti-Semitic hatred,” he said.
The attack against the synagogue of the Ghriba nous bouleverse. Nous pensons avec douleur aux victims, au peuple tunisien, nos amis. Nous sommes aux côtés de la famille de notre compatriot assassiné. Toujours, sans relâche, nous lutterons contre la haine antisémite.
—Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) May 10, 2023
Likewise, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement in which it expressed its “deep sadness” for what happened, but also He described the attack as “hateful” and condemned it “with the greatest firmness.”
For his part, the Israeli Diaspora Affairs Minister, Amichai Chikli, called the attack “serious” and “terrible.” In addition, he maintained that “unfortunately, the incident was preceded by a tense period of shouting and harassment from the Jewish community in the place.”
Meanwhile, the United States expressed its condolences to the Tunisian people and hailed the swift action of the security forces.
The attack took place in one of the main tourist centers of Tunisia. According to the organization of the event, some 5,000 pilgrims, mainly from other parts of the world, have participated in this year’s pilgrimage.
The region had seen a slump in tourism, one of its main sources of income, since 2002, when an attack claimed by al-Qaeda killed another 21 people. The region was recovering from that assault and from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
With Reuters, AFP and EFE
