Summary:

On the evening of 9 May, 2023, a member of Tunisia’s National Guard stationed on Djerba island killed three other police officers and two civilians in a shooting spree that ended near the al Ghriba Synagogue where the assailant was killed by security forces. The attack coincided with the annual Jewish pilgrimage and festival at the al Ghriba synagogue that had brought several thousand Jewish pilgrims to the Island of Djerba this year.

The Ministry of the Interior announced that a guard of the Naval Center of the National Guard in Aghir Djerba “killed his colleague using his individual weapon and seized ammunition. Then he tried to reach the vicinity of the Ghriba synagogue and opened fire indiscriminately at the security units stationed in the place, which confronted him and prevented him from reaching the synagogue and killing him.‘’

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The Ministry of the Interior added that “the operation resulted in the injury of 6 security agents, with injuries of varying severity, one of whom died, and two visitors died, and 4 other people were injured of varying degrees, and they were taken to the hospital for treatment.”

The Ministry of the Interior indicated that the attack was premeditated, but insisted the attack was criminal and not related to terrorism. Senior officials, including President Kais Saied and Minister of the Interior Kamel Feki blamed “criminals” for the attack and provided assurances that the country remains safe for tourism.

The two foreign victims were French and Tunisian-Israeli. The French anti-terrorism prosecutors office announced the opening of an investigation due to the death of a French citizen.

Profits from tourism were more than cut in half following multiple terrorist attacks in 2015 that included shootings at the Bardo Museum and at a beach resort in Sousse. These attacks together killed more than 50 people, and eroded confidence in the security environment in Tunisia. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the tourism industry was making progress toward recovery, but had not reached pre-2011 revolution level.

Outlook:  

The attack comes as Tunisian tourism is recording a strong recovery after a sharp slowdown during the COVID-19 pandemic. The economy is heavily dependent on tourism and negative perceptions of the security environment could severely impact the country’s economy, potentially making the current economic challenges worse.

The fallout from Tunisia’s ongoing economic struggles, including rising prices and inflation, will likely continue to quietly fuel the frustrations that eventually lead to criminal acts as well as the ideological radicalization that undergirds terrorism.

Tunisia’s security forces appear well equipped to disrupt threats, however, if the underlying issues fueling acts of violence go unaddressed, attacks will continue to happen, whether they be ideologically motivated or otherwise.

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