Tunisian soldier opens fire at military base

A TUNISIAN soldier has killed an army colonel and two others after opening fire at a military base in the capital Tunis, state TV said.

Another 15 soldiers were wounded at the Bouchoucha base yesterday before the attacker shot himself dead.

According to Al Jazeera’s report, it was not immediately clear what triggered the incident, but it caused alarm in a capital city still on edge after an attack in March by gunmen at the Bardo national museum.

Mohamed Ali Aroui, a spokesman for the interior ministry, said the incident was not being viewed as a terrorist attack.

“The incident which took place at the Bouchoucha barracks is not connected with a terrorist operation,” Aroui said.

A local school was evacuated after the shooting started at the base that is not far from the Bardo area.

Tunisian forces have been carrying out operations against armed groups since March when two gunmen opened fire on tourists at the Bardo museum, killing 21 foreigners in the worst attack in Tunisia in more than a decade, Al Jazeera reports.

Since the overthrow of strongman Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in 2011, several groups have launched attacks in the country.