Attack on a synagogue in Tunisia kills

2023-05-10 17:04:00

A member of the Tunisian coast guard opened fire at the Jewish church on the island of Djerba, the Interior Ministry said after the fact late Tuesday evening. Accordingly, he first killed a colleague and then “randomly” shot security guards and visitors in front of the La Ghriba synagogue. Security forces then killed the attacker.

Three security guards were among those killed. According to the Foreign Ministry, two visitors to the synagogue were also killed: a 30-year-old from Tunisia and a 42-year-old from France. Four other visitors and five security guards were injured. The authorities had started investigations into the “cowardly attack”. There was initially no information on possible motives.

The Jewish festival Lag Baomer is taking place in the synagogue these days, to which many local believers and pilgrims from Israel, France and other countries travel every year. According to Israeli media reports, around 1,000 people were in the church during the crime. According to Tunisian information, around 7,000 people took part in the pilgrimage this year. During the festival, particularly strict safety precautions apply every year.

Tunisia is a popular travel destination for holidaymakers. The security situation is generally considered stable. But there have also been deadly terrorist attacks in Tunisia, including an attack by the terrorist organization al-Qaeda on the same synagogue in 2002. At the time, 14 German tourists were among the 20 fatalities. There have also been a number of deadly attacks in recent years, including in the capital Tunis.

“This attack on independent people will only strengthen the unity of the country,” the Foreign Ministry said. The resistance against “all kinds of crimes” will continue. There were initially no cancellations for planned visits by tourists after the crime, said Tourism Minister Mohamed al-Moez Belhassine during a visit to the crime scene, according to the state agency TAP. The situation has calmed down since Wednesday morning.

Videos circulating on social media appeared to show people running in panic through a neighboring building to the synagogue as gunshots rang out. Decorated with Tunisian flags, the caravanserai – originally a hostel for travelers – is, like the synagogue itself, the scene of the celebrations.

Tunisia has no diplomatic ties to Israel, but allows its citizens into the country as part of organized tours to the festival. According to the Jewish community, only around 1,800 Jews live in Tunisia itself, most of them in Djerba. In the middle of the 20th century there were still about 100,000 Jews in Tunisia.

Lag Baomer is a Jewish festival of joy. It traditionally punctuates the period of mourning between the Passover festival – which commemorates the liberation of the Jews from slavery by the Egyptian pharaohs – and the Shavuot harvest festival.

Popular with tourists, La Ghriba Synagogue on Djerba, with its magnificently designed interior, dates from 1920. Its foundation stone is said to have come from the destroyed Temple in Jerusalem.

Austria condemned the attack on the Ghriba Synagogue in Djerba “in the strongest possible terms. Religious sites must be respected and protected at all times,” the Foreign Ministry said on Twitter.