Dozens of Islamist fighters stormed through the Tunisian town of Ben Guerdan near the Libyan border on Monday attacking army and police posts in a raid that killed at least 50 people, including civilians, the government and residents said.
Authorities sealed off the nearby beach resort town of Djerba, a popular destination for foreign and local tourists, imposed a curfew on Ben Guerdan and closed two border crossings with Libya after the attack.
It was not clear if the attackers crossed over the border, but it was the type of militant operation Tunisia's government had feared as it prepares for potential spillover from Libya, where Islamic State militants have gained ground.
"This was an unprecedented, well-organized attack," President Beji Caid Essebsi told local radio. "But the people in the south can be confident the army and police will win against this barbarity across the border."
Soldiers killed 33 militants and arrested six, the Interior Ministry said. Hospital and security sources said at least seven civilians were killed along with ten soldiers.
"If the army had not been ready, the terrorists would have been able to raise their flag over Ben Guerdan and gotten a symbolic victory," said Abd Elhamid Jelassi, vice president of the Islamist party Ennahda, part of the government coalition.
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