Two killed as security forces storm militant hideout in central Tunisia

At least two militants have blown themselves up during a raid by Tunisian security forces on a hideout in the central region of Sidi Bouzid, Interior Ministry says.

The ministry said in a statement on Thursday that the raid took place in the city of Jilma, which is located 250 km (156 miles) south of the capital Tunis. The militants killed themselves after being encircled by security forces who stormed their hideout in the region.

The two suspects were "among the most dangerous terrorists" wanted by police since December 12, the ministry added. They belonged to an offshoot of Jund al-Khilafa, an affiliate of the Daesh terrorist group.

According to the statement, the militants had planned to commit "spectacular terrorist acts targeting patrols and security posts". Five explosive devices, three hunting rifles, mobile phones and a large sum of money were seized in the raid.

National security spokesman Walid Hkima said a police officer was wounded during a heavy exchange of fire between the two sides.

Acting on a tip-off, "police units raided a house in the Jelma area... and two terrorists blew themselves up with explosive belts", he said.

The existence of the cell in the troubled region shows the challenge Tunisia faces from militants, some of whom cross the porous borders from Libya and Algeria. Most members of the cell were arrested on Dec. 5 in an operation during which material for making bombs was seized.

Military officials say they have been hunting down militants in the area for months but have not been able to completely dislodge them from the rugged area.

Tunisia has been hit by a number of deadly attacks by Takfiri terrorists in the past years.

In October, a female bomber blew up her explosives outside a hotel in the center of the Tunisian capital of Tunis, leaving at least nine people injured, including police officers.

PressTV-Bomber wounds 9 in Tunisia’s capital

A female bomber has blown herself up in the center of the Tunisian capital of Tunis, leaving at least nine people injured, including police officers.

Nine members of Tunisia's security forces were killed in July during an attack in the west of the country close to the border with Algeria,

In June 2015, an assailant armed with a rifle killed 38 people, mostly foreign tourists, on a beach in the Tunisian resort town of Sousse.

The attack came more than a month after two militants stormed the Bardo Museum in Tunis and shot dead 21 people, mainly foreign tourists.

On November 24, 2015, a bomb attack by Daesh terrorists on a bus carrying presidential guards killed 12 people in the capital.

PressTV-9 police killed in attack in western Tunisia

Nine members of Tunisia's security forces killed in an attack in the west of the country close to the border with Algeria.

Tunisia has been plagued by violence since the 2011 uprising that ousted the country’s dictator, Zine el Abidine Ben Ali, who was in power for over two decades.

The relative calm in Tunisia has been punctured by growing instability in neighboring Libya, which has been in chaos since former dictator Muammar Gaddafi was toppled and later killed in 2011.

Law enforcement agencies fear further terror attacks in the country as an estimated 3,000 Tunisian terrorists believed to be within the ranks of Daesh in Iraq, Syria and elsewhere could pose troubles when they return home.

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