Singapore - At least one militant on a
motorbike blew himself up outside the US embassy in Tunisia on
Friday wounding five police, local media reported, in the
country's most serious apparent attack since the summer.
Embassy officials confirmed the attack in a tweet on its
official Twitter feed, and urged people to avoid the area.
A Reuters reporter saw a scorched, damaged motorbike and a
damaged police vehicle a few metres from the embassy's main
gate, as a helicopter whirled overhead and large numbers of
police gathered.
Radio Mosaique, a local radio station, reported that the
attacker had injured five police officers when blowing himself
up. The station also reported that there may have been a second
perpetrator.
Sirens could be heard on the major highway linking the Lac
district, where the embassy is located, with Tunis and suburbs
in the north.
A police officer and a soldier stand guard at the site of a suicide attack near the U.S. embassy in Tunis. Picture: Zoubeir Souissi/Reuters
A forensic expert and police officers at the site of a suicide attack near the U.S. embassy in Tunis. Picture: Zoubeir Souissi/Reuters
Last summer, Islamic State said it was behind three militant
blasts in the capital, including one near the French embassy
that killed a policeman and another that wounded five people
during a security operation to detain a suspect.
Tunisia's critical tourism sector is highly vulnerable to
militant incidents and was devastated after two major attacks in
2015, which killed scores of visitors at a beach resort and a
popular museum.
Members of security forces stand guard at the site of a suicide attack near the U.S. embassy in Tunis. Picture: Zoubeir Souissi/Reuters
Diplomats who have worked with Tunisia on its security
capacity say it has grown more effective in preventing and
responding to militant attacks in recent years.