International community condemns Ben Guerdane attack

Some global leaders have condemned Monday’s attack on Tunisia’s south-eastern coastal town of Ben Guerdane.

Among those who have condemned the attack which left at least 54 dead are the United Nations, France and the United States who also pledged their support to help Tunisia fight the war against terror.

36 jihadists, 11 security personnel and 7 civilians died when the militants attacked a security post.

Tunisia’s Prime Minister Beji Caid Essebsi in a televised address on Tuesday evening said: “We won a battle but we have not yet won the war. The war against terrorism continues.”

UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon extended his “deepest condolences to the families of the victims and to the Tunisian people and government, and wish a speedy recovery to the injured.”

He also reiterated the support of the UN to help Tunisia fight against “the scourge of terrorism” and “preserve the gains of the revolution.”

French president Francois Hollande also expressed his condolence and assured that “more than ever, France is determined to continue and intensify its cooperation with Tunisia in the fight against terrorism,” he said in a statement from the Elysee.

J'exprime mon soutien et toute ma solidarité à la Tunisie après l’attaque survenue dans la ville de Ben Guerdane.

— François Hollande (@fhollande) March 7, 2016

The US State Department’s spokesman, John Kirby, “strongly condemned” the attack while praising “the swift and courageous response of the Tunisian security forces” adding that Tunisia could always count on its “close partnership” with the United States.

.statedeptspox Kirby condemns todays terrorist attack in #Tunisia https://t.co/0Hu974j7U5

— Department of State (StateDept) March 7, 2016

EU foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini said the attack “once more demonstrates the gravity of the threat faced by Tunisia”.

Egypt’s president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi spoke to his Tunisian counterpart by phone on Monday night to express his solidarity, according to the Tunisian news agency, TAP.

Other Arab countries including Algeria and Morocco have also condemned the attack and praised the “courageous and determined response” of the Tunisian security forces.

A spokesperson for Algeria’s Foreign Affairs Ministry, Abdelaziz Benali Cherif said the country “strongly condemns the terrorist attack that day, against the city of Ben Guerdane in Tunisia.”

He however praised the “courageous and determined response of the Tunisian security forces” and promised “the people and government of our Tunisian brothers, (Algeria’s) full solidarity”.