Group Linked to Islamic State Claims Responsibility for Tunisia Attack
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Version 0 of 1. TUNIS — A day after the Tunisian government said it had killed the orchestrator of the massacre at the National Bardo Museum and rounded up most of those involved, another group of militants declaring themselves to be members of the Islamic State operating inside Tunisia claimed responsibility for the attack and threatened more in the future. The announcement, made in a five-minute audio recording that was posted Monday to YouTube, was the latest of several media messages since the attack on the museum on March 18 but was the clearest claim of responsibility by members of the Islamic State. The new group identifies itself as Jund al-Khilafah, or Soldiers of the Caliphate, and says its members are operating inside Tunisia. The group has declared its loyalty to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL. The message, by an unseen Arabic speaker, contains a picture of a black banner. It was released and uploaded to YouTube by Ifriqiyah Media, which is a jihadist propaganda arm for Islamist movements in Africa. By Tuesday, YouTube had removed the video. The speaker addresses Tunisians, urging them to understand that the museum attack was just the first of many assaults. “We give you the glad tidings that we are soldiers of the Islamic State in your land — Jund al-Khilafah, soldiers of the Caliph Abu Bakr, may Allah preserve him,” the speaker says in Arabic, according to a translation by the SITE Intelligence Group. “Surely, the security of Tunisia will see horror, and surely you will see assassinations and explosions,” the speaker says. “Two men from among our soldiers immersed and acted against you and your citizens. So what if we send dozens and dozens?” The speaker threatens senior Tunisian officials by name, including President Beji Caid Essebsi and Prime Minister Habib Essid. The ministers of defense and the interior and members of the army, police and National Guard, who are in the forefront of antiterrorism operations, are also singled out. He swears revenge against them for being disbelievers and supporters of democracy and secularism. Tunisian fighters have long been active in Al Qaeda and its affiliates, and several groups have been carrying out attacks on the country and its security forces. Some have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and some remain loyal to the original leadership of Al Qaeda, but they seem often to be cooperating on the ground. Algerian and Tunisian groups linked to Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb are active in the southwest mountains bordering Algeria and are involved in smuggling groups across the region. They and other groups are using bases in Libya to train men for the wars in Syria and Iraq, and in recent months they have increasingly declared their intention to target Tunisia. Little is known about Jund al-Khilafah, although the group has put out messages on social media for some months threatening to start operations in Tunisia. A group with the same name, led by a Tunisian, used to operate in Pakistan’s tribal areas. The Tunisian government had praised its security forces for an ambush on Sunday that killed the Algerian commander and eight other men of a group called Okba Ibn Nafaa, which it says masterminded the Bardo attack. Security forces have also detained 23 people in connection with the museum attack, which officials have said is most of the group responsible. The government has warned Algeria to expect some form of revenge attack after the ambush. |