Tunisia’s security services have detained a terrorist from among the leaders of the Al-Qaeda* terror group, the country’s interior ministry said on Thursday.
The statement released by the Interior Ministry said “As part of a nationwide effort to combat terrorism and prevent terrorist attacks … a dangerous terrorist, one of the leaders of Al-Qaeda in Tunisia, has been detained.”
According to the statement, the detained militant “previously carried out leadership tasks with the same organization in one of the flashpoints of tension and was linked to the elements of the so-called Uqba Ibn Nafi brigade holed up in the Tunisian mountains.”
Tunisian President Kais Said had in early December extended the state of emergency in the country for six months in connection with terrorist threats.
The country’s state of emergency has been regularly extended since its introduction in 2015 after a series of terrorist attacks.
Tunisian authorities have regularly strengthened security measures, which have allowed it to restore the flow of foreign tourists to the North African country.