8 Tunisian soldiers killed by terrorists near border with Algeria: state TV

8 Tunisian soldiers killed by terrorists near border with Algeria: state TV
# 30 July 2013 04:35 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Eight Tunisian soldiers belonging to a counter-insurgency unit were killed by terrorists in Mountain Chaambi near the border with Algeria, Tunisian state TV reported Monday evening, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

A number of others were injured and flown by helicopter to a local hospital in the town of Kasserine, the report said, adding that the authorities did not elaborate on the circumstances of the soldiers' deaths.

Counter-insurgency operations have been ongoing for the past six months in the mountainous area where the soldiers were killed.

A number of soldiers and officers have died in landmine explosions in the area, but it is the first time that such a large number of casualties is caused in direct clashes with alleged al- Qaida operatives hiding in the mountains.

The attack, which comes after the assassination on Thursday of Mohamed Brahmi, a prominent secular opposition politician, is set to further deepen the ongoing political crisis in the country.

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