Swedes stuck in Tunisia after deadly terror attack
UPDATED: Sweden's foreign minister has condemned a terror attack which killed dozens of holidaymakers at a Tunisian tourist resort on Friday, where around 200 Swedes were staying.
By Friday afternoon at least 28 people were estimated to have died in the attack, but the death toll was still rising. It was still not known if any Swedes were among the dead.
Tobias Vestergren, a press officer for Sweden's Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Stockholm, told The Local that around 200 Swedes were currently understood to be staying in the area around Sousse, with 800 others elsewhere in the country.
"We are closely looking at the situation and speaking to our consulate in Sousse so that we can be ready to help any Swedes in need," he said.
"As for travel advice, it is very important for Swedes to follow the instructions of local authorities and police in Tunisia," he added.
But he said that Sweden was not currently advising Swedes or other international tourists connecting to Tunisia from the Nordic country to avoid travelling to the north African nation.
"No at the moment we are not saying people should not go there, just that they should be careful if they do so."
The Tunisia Interior Ministry reported that there were at least seven gunmen involved in the attack.
According to reports the attackers exchanged fire with security personnel at the resort which lies to the south-east of the capital Tunis.
Local radio station Mosaique reported that German and British tourists were among those killed in the shooting, which comes only three months after an attack on the Bardo museum in Tunis in which 24 people, among them 20 tourists, lost their lives.
"The Swedish government forcefully condemns the terror attack that took place today in Sousse in Tunisia. The town is much visited area among many charter travellers," said Sweden's foreign minister Margot Wallström in a statement.
Horrific terrorist attacks in France, Tunisia and Kuwait. Many dead. We must and will continue to fight terrorism.
— Margot Wallström (@margotwallstrom) June 26, 2015
The shooting happened within hours of an attack outside a factory near the French city of Lyon in which a man was decapitated and two others injured by a man linked to Islamic extremism and carrying an Islamic State (Isis) flag.
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By Friday afternoon at least 28 people were estimated to have died in the attack, but the death toll was still rising. It was still not known if any Swedes were among the dead.
Tobias Vestergren, a press officer for Sweden's Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Stockholm, told The Local that around 200 Swedes were currently understood to be staying in the area around Sousse, with 800 others elsewhere in the country.
"We are closely looking at the situation and speaking to our consulate in Sousse so that we can be ready to help any Swedes in need," he said.
According to reports the attackers exchanged fire with security personnel at the resort which lies to the south-east of the capital Tunis.
Local radio station Mosaique reported that German and British tourists were among those killed in the shooting, which comes only three months after an attack on the Bardo museum in Tunis in which 24 people, among them 20 tourists, lost their lives.
"The Swedish government forcefully condemns the terror attack that took place today in Sousse in Tunisia. The town is much visited area among many charter travellers," said Sweden's foreign minister Margot Wallström in a statement.
Horrific terrorist attacks in France, Tunisia and Kuwait. Many dead. We must and will continue to fight terrorism.
— Margot Wallström (@margotwallstrom) June 26, 2015
The shooting happened within hours of an attack outside a factory near the French city of Lyon in which a man was decapitated and two others injured by a man linked to Islamic extremism and carrying an Islamic State (Isis) flag.
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