SOUSSE,
Tunisia — At least one gunman disguised as a vacationer attacked this
placid Mediterranean resort on Friday, killing at least 38 people at a
beachfront hotel — most of them British tourists — before he was shot to
death by the security forces.
The
slaughter at the Imperial Marhaba Hotel in Sousse, a palm-flecked town
on the northeast Tunisian coast, was among the worst terrorist attacks
in the country’s history and the second in a little more than three
months aimed at the tourist industry, which depends on European
vacationers.
It sent shock waves through the country, which was still recovering from the massacre of mostly foreign tourists at a museum in Tunis, the capital, in March.
Roaming
from the beach to the pool to the reception area of the hotel, the
assailant appeared to have methodically targeted guests with a
Kalashnikov rifle he had hidden in a beach umbrella, according to
accounts by witnesses, including terrified hotel workers. He was shot
and killed by police officers who witnesses said arrived about 30
minutes after the attack began.
There
were conflicting accounts on whether the gunman acted alone. The
Interior Ministry identified him as a 23-year-old Tunisian student with
no police record. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the
attack, according to statements released Friday night on Twitter.
There
had been speculation almost immediately that the Islamic State might
have played a role, partly because it had taken responsibility for the
museum attack in Tunis, which the group had described as a siege on
“citizens of the Crusader countries.”
Tunisian officials said they knew of only one gunman, although the police were searching for possible accomplices.
President Beji Caid Essebsi rushed to the resort and promised tough new procedures to thwart any further mayhem. The speaker of Tunisia’s Parliament, Mohamed Ennaceur, proclaimed in Tunis that “terrorism is targeting the state and the interests of the people.”
Britain’s
deputy ambassador, Rufus Drabble, who arrived here within hours of the
assault, said many of the victims were Britons, but he declined to
specify a number. He said two teams of British officials were checking
the stricken hotel and nearby resorts to ensure that other British
citizens were accounted for. “This is sickening,” he said.
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