Tunisia extends state of emergency for 6 more months

Tunis, Dec 26 : A state of emergency in Tunisia which was first declared five years ago, has been extended for an additional six more months, President Kais Saied announced.

"President Saied decided to extend the state of emergency in the entire territory of the republic for a period of six months, starting from December 26, 2020 until June 23, 2021," an official statement quoted the Tunisian leader as saying on Friday.

The statement did not provide any further details.The state of emergency was first declared on November 24, 2015, following a deadly bomb attack on a bus of the presidential guards, killing 12 people.

The measure grants exceptional powers to the countrys security forces.It also allows to "ensure the control of the press" and for strikes and meetings that "create disorder" to be banned.

Just few months before the state of emergency was declared, Tunisia on June 26, 2015, witnessed the deadliest non-state attack in the countrys history when 38 people people were killed after a gunman opened fire at a tourist resort in Port El Kantaoui, about 10 km north of the city of Sousse.In March that year, 22 people, mostly tourists, were killed when three terrorists attacked the Bardo National Museum in the Tunisian capital city of Tunis.

All three attacks were claimed by the Islamic State (IS) terror group.