World News for Students of English

23-03-2015 07:00

Nineteen people have been killed after militants attacked a museum in the Tunisian parliament building. Initial reports said those killed include British nationals, but the Tunisian Prime Minister has now said that the victims were Polish, Spanish, German, Italian and Tunisian, including 17 tourists.

The gunmen held hostages inside the Bardo Museum. The security forces surrounded the building and later stormed it, killing two militants.

This amateur video shows armed police officers in the streets and crowds singing the national anthem. Ambulances can also be seen taking people to hospital.

One policeman was killed along with a cleaner during the operation.

The Interior Ministry has said Tunisian troops managed to free all of the hostages, but there were reports that police were hunting as many as three gunmen believed to still be at large.

Police could not immediately say who the gunmen were, but the country has struggled with Islamic extremism including militants linked to Al-Qaeda and Islamic state.

The attack is the worst since an Al-Qaeda suicide bombing on a synagogue which killed 21 people on the tourist island of Djerba in 2002.

Difficult words: militant (a person who fights), initial (in the beginning), hostage (a prisoner), storm (attack), interior (relating to country’s internal affairs), troops (soldier), at large (free), struggle (to try hard to fight).

Source: www.ondemandnews.com