Two soldiers killed in Tunisia hunt for Al-Qaeda-linked group
6/7/2013 10:26:44 AM
A roadside bomb killed two Tunisian soldiers on Thursday in the mountainous border region near Algeria where security forces have been hunting Al-Qaeda linked jihadists, with the government warning of a "dangerous evolution."
"At around 7:45 am, two soldiers were killed and two others wounded when a device exploded as their vehicle passed by in the Doghra area of Mount Chaambi," said spokesman Mokhtar Ben Nasr.
The defence ministry said the blast occurred in a populated area.
"The bomb was placed on a path next to the Chaambi park in a populated area. We consider that a dangerous evolution given that everyone who uses this path, citizens, soldiers and security forces, are targets," it said.
A security source in Kasserine, the regional capital, told AFP one of the wounded soldiers could lose his leg.
Mount Chaambi is a rugged frontier region where the Tunisian army has been tracking militants the government says are veterans of the Islamist rebellion in northern Mali with links to Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).
"At around 7:45 am, two soldiers were killed and two others wounded when a device exploded as their vehicle passed by in the Doghra area of Mount Chaambi," said spokesman Mokhtar Ben Nasr.
The defence ministry said the blast occurred in a populated area.
"The bomb was placed on a path next to the Chaambi park in a populated area. We consider that a dangerous evolution given that everyone who uses this path, citizens, soldiers and security forces, are targets," it said.
A security source in Kasserine, the regional capital, told AFP one of the wounded soldiers could lose his leg.
Mount Chaambi is a rugged frontier region where the Tunisian army has been tracking militants the government says are veterans of the Islamist rebellion in northern Mali with links to Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).