Soldiers shot dead two suspected ‘jihadists’ in the mountainous Kasserine region of central Tunisia, the defense ministry said on Wednesday.
It said more might have been killed on Tuesday evening but the operation on Mount Sammama was still continuing so it was a preliminary toll.
Tunisian media cited military sources as saying that as many as seven suspected ‘jihadists’ might have been killed.
A hospital source in Kasserine said one soldier had suffered a bullet wound.
Mount Sammama is adjacent to Mount Chaambi, considered to be the main rear base of the ‘jihadists’ near the border with Algeria.
Soldiers shot dead two suspected ‘jihadists’ in the same area on February 17.
Since its 2011 revolution, Tunisia has experienced an increase in ‘jihadist’ attacks that have cost the lives of dozens of members of the security forces and also 59 foreign tourists.
The country has been under a state of emergency since November 2015, when a suicide bombing in Tunis claimed by the ISIL ‘jihadist’ group killed 12 presidential guards.
Source: AFP
