Terrorists killed at least 19 people Friday in an attack on a beachfront Tunisian hotel, Tunisian officials said, according to the state-run TAP news agency.
Tunisia’s Interior Minister reported 19 dead — at least some of whom were guests at the Hotel Riu Imperial Marhaba in Sousse, TAP reported.
Still, those figures are preliminary. In fact, an operation was still underway Friday afternoon after Tunisian security forces exchanged gunfire with the attackers.
The attack is the latest in Tunisia, a North African nation has attracted visitors for its culture and Mediterranean Sea beaches, apparently targeting tourists.
In March, at least 23 people died when gunmen stormed the landmark Bardo Museum in Tunis. In a subsequent audio statement, ISIS identified two men — Abu Zakariya al-Tunisi and Abu Anas al-Tunisi — who it said used “automatic weapons and hand grenades” to kill and injure what it called “crusaders and apostates”