Tunisia’s prime minister Habib Essid has stated 21 people are dead after the brutal attack on the National Bardo Museum in the capital city of Tunis Wednesday morning. Among the dead are 17 foreign tourists. He also said two to three gunmen are still at large. Moreover, Essid appeared on live national television and told reporters the foreign tourists included people from Germany, Spain, Italy, and Poland.

Two of the attackers were killed when Tunisian law enforcement officers, donning full combat gear, entered the building to take took control of the scene. Currently, Tunisian forces are searching for two or three other gunmen that were involved and fled the scene. Both a Tunisian citizen and a law enforcement officer died during the attack.

The attack on the Bardo Museum resembles the attack on Charlie Hebdo, the French satirical magazine that was overrun by Islamic extremists just a few months ago, resulting in multiple deaths. This is the first attack on a Tunisian tourist site in years. In recent times, Tunisia has struggled as a young democracy, and has had trouble fighting advancing Islamic insurgents.

As of now, the identities of the museum attackers are unknown. Essid stated everything is being done to hunt down the remaining gunmen.

Credit: guardianlv.com