Tunisia’s presidency says four arrests have been made in connection with the attack as civil society groups call for silent demonstration on Thursday 
 
 More protests against the deadly attack at Tunisia’s Bardo national museum are planned for Thursday, as the prime minister said one of the two gunmen was known to security services. 
 
 The country is in shock after two Tunisian gunmen killed 18 tourists and three Tunisians on Wednesday in the deadliest attack on civilians in the country for 13 years. The gunmen were shot dead by security forces. 
 
 
 
 On Thursday afternoon security forces arrested four people in connection with the attack, Reuters reported the president’s office as saying. The army will also be deployed to increase security in Tunisia’s major cities. 
 
 In an interview with France’s RTL radio on Thursday morning, the prime minister, Habib Essid, said Tunisia was working with other countries to learn more about the attackers, identified as Yassine Laabidi and Hatem Khachnaoui. He said Laabidi had been flagged to intelligence, although not for “anything special”. 
 
 The night before, the newly elected president Beji Caid Essebsi gave an address to the nation in which he said: “I want the people of Tunisia to understand firstly and lastly that we are in a war with terror, and these savage minority groups will not frighten us. 
 
 
 
 “The fight against them will continue until they are exterminated.” 
 
 Authorities have launched a manhunt for two or three suspected accomplices in the attack. 
 
 Hours after the police ended the siege, thousands of Tunisians flocked to the capital’s main thoroughfare, Avenue Habib Bourguiba, waving red Tunisian flags and singing songs from the 2011 Arab spring revolution. 
 
 
 
 Mohammed Nasri, a young activist, said: “After the last election we thought we made a big step forward to real democracy, but what happened today was like a KO to our future. An attack so close to our parliament makes us speechless.” 
 
 Tunisia’s main trade union confederation and other civil society groups called for a silent demonstration later on Thursday outside the Bardo museum. The groups called on Tunisians to gather at 3pm GMT “to demonstrate our national unity in the fight against terrorism”. 
 
 Tunisia’s health minister, Said Aidi, said the number of dead had risen on Thursday to 23 people, including 18 foreign tourists, with almost 50 people wounded. Five Tunisians were killed, including two attackers. Aidi said all the injuries came from bullet wounds, and that several victims were brought in without identity documents. 
 
 As well as three Tunisian nationals, the gunmen killed four Italians, three Japanese, two Colombians, two Spaniards, an Australian, a Briton, a Pole and a French national. The nationalities of the other murdered tourists were not confirmed, but reports said an unknown number of South African tourists may have been involved. 
 
 
 
 Facebook Twitter Pinterest A woman holds a placard which reads ‘We are all Bardo’. Photograph: Chedly Ben Ibrahim/Demotix/Corbis 
 
 Spain’s foreign minister said two Spaniards who survived the attack hid inside the museum building all night. Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo said Juan Carlos Sanchez and Cristina Rubio, who is four months pregnant, appeared after dawn on Thursday and were well. 
 
 The targeting of tourists by terrorists is a new phenomenon in Tunisia and a big blow to a country whose struggling post-revolution economy depends largely on its beach resorts and foreign visitors. Tunisia, which peacefully elected a new parliament in December, has prided itself as a model of political transition since the overthrow of the brutal authoritarian Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali in 2011, in contrast to the post-revolutionary difficulties of its troubled neighbours. 
 
 
 
 Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tunisian soldiers guarding the Bardo museum on Wednesday night. Photograph: Michel Euler/AP 
 
 But it has also been struggling to tackle the growing terrorist threat in the region and thousands of Tunisians have left to fight foreign jihad. The attack immediately raised questions about the Islamist terrorist threat to Tunisia amid mounting anxiety that jihadi violence is spilling over the border from neighbouring Libya, as well as Algeria. 
 
 Wednesday night’s protests took place close to the French embassy, which has been ringed by barbed wire and concrete barriers for many months, a sign of the apprehension the city feels about the threat of terrorist attack. 
 
 That threat has become real with the killings at the Bardo museum, in what is the first jihadi strike against civilians in Tunisia since its 2011 revolution; previously militants had restricted attacks to military and government targets. 
 
 “Today’s murderous assault targeted not only tourists and Tunisians but also the tolerant and rights-respecting society that Tunisians have been struggling to build,” said Eric Goldstein of Human Rights Watch. 
 
 The dilemma for many Tunisians now is how the government should respond: many are proud of their break from dictatorship, but worry about how the government can crack down on terrorism while preserving hard-won freedoms. 
 
 Tunisia's clear and present danger Read more 
 
 “Everybody is shocked,” said Houeida Anouar, of Huffington Post Maghreb. “The government now has a huge responsibility. I hated the state when you had no rights. I don’t want Tunisians to go there, it would be a horrible back-pedalling.” 
 
 The attack began just after midday as gunmen armed with Kalashnikovs opened fire in front of the Bardo museum, the country’s largest and an important tourist attraction, which houses one of the world’s biggest collections of Roman mosaics within a 19th-century palace adjacent to parliament. As the gunmen struck, tourists were getting out of coaches to visit the museum on a spring day that had seen scores of visitors, many from cruise ships docked in the port for the day. 
 
 Wafel Bouzi, a guide with a Spanish-speaking group, told journalists that on exiting the museum with his group, he saw in the car park “a young 25-year-old man, dressed normally, without a beard” who was holding a Kalashnikov. “I thought he was playing with it. Then he opened fire.” 
 
 'Our hearts are black': Tunisians in shock after gunmen target tourists in capital Read more 
 
 The gunmen began shooting near the coaches then entered the museum where hundreds of panicked visitors had taken refuge. Josep Lluís Cusidó, mayor of the small Catalan town of Vallmoll, was at the museum as part of a wedding anniversary trip with his wife. “A few men walked in and started shooting. We’re alive thanks to a miracle,” he told the Spanish news agency Efe. “These men suddenly started shooting and people started falling to the ground dead and things started falling from the ceiling … Everything happened so fast.” 
 
 Two Britons were “caught up in” the shootings, the British Foreign Office said, but did not specify whether they were among the dead or injured. 
 
 Wednesday’s attack was the worst since 2002, when an al-Qaida militant killed 21 people, mostly German tourists, after detonating a truck bomb in front of a historic synagogue on the Tunisian island of Djerba in 2002. 
 
 Facebook Twitter Pinterest Escorted by security forces, rescue workers bring a stretcher to the Bardo museum on Wednesday. Photograph: Salah Ben Mahmoud/AP 
 
 It came days after the death of Ahmed Al-Rouissi, a Tunisian also known as Abu Zakariya Al-Tunisi, who led a contingent of Islamic State fighters in Libya. He was killed in clashes with Libyan troops near the town of Sirte, a stronghold of followers of Muammar Gaddafi, the late Libyan strongman. 
 
 Tunisian commentators speculated there might be a connection between his death and Wednesday’s deadly attack. Pro-Isis Twitter accounts hailed the attack as “ghazwat Tunis” or the “raid of Tunis” (ghazwa is the description given to the early Islamic battles) and have cheered on the attackers. A purported Isis video from last December threatened attacks on Tunisia. 
 
 
 
 
 
 The Associated Press contributed to this report ||||| More than 40 people wounded in the attack 
 
 Tunisian authorities have arrested nine people allegedly linked to Wednesday's attack apparently targeting tourists at a museum in Tunis that killed at least 21 people and injured 47 others. 
 
 "Security forces were able to arrest four people directly linked to the [terrorist] operation and five suspected of having ties to the cell," the presidency said in a statement on Thursday. 
 
 The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group has reportedly released audio recordings claiming responsibility over the attack at the National Bardo Museum. 
 
 Earlier on Thursday, officials identified two of the gunmen as Yassine Laabidi and Hatem Khachnaoui, saying one of the assailants was known to the intelligence services. 
 
 It was not clear which of the two men was known to the intelligence service and no formal links to a particular armed group had been established. 
 
 In an interview with France's RTL radio, Prime Minister Habib Essid said Tunisia was working with other countries to learn more about the attackers. 
 
 
 
 Both men were killed by security services in a raid after they attacked the museum. 
 
 Details about the attackers' identity emerged as President Beij Caid Essebsi vowed to wage a "merciless war against terrorism" after the gunmen killed 19 foreign tourists and two Tunisians in a daylight attack. 
 
 As the international community denounced Wednesday's assault, Essebsi said Tunisia would fight "to our last breath". 
 
 "I want the Tunisian people to understand that we are in a war against terrorism and that these savage minorities do not frighten us," said Essebsi, who visited some of the dozens being treated for wounds in a Tunis hospital. 
 
 The gunmen opened fire on the tourists - including visitors from Japan, Italy, France, Australia, Colombia, Poland and Spain - as they got off a bus then chased them inside the museum, said Prime Minister Habib Essid. 
 
 A Spanish man and a pregnant Spanish woman, who survived the attack by hiding in the museum all night in fear, were retrieved safely on Thursday morning by security forces, Tunisia's Health Minister Said Aidi told The Associated Press news agency. 
 
 Spain's foreign minister said police searched all night for the pair, Juan Carlos Sanchez and Cristina Rubio. 
 
 ... We are in a war against terrorism ... these savage minorities do not frighten us. We will fight them without mercy to our last breath. Beij Caid Essebsi, President of Tunisia 
 
 A Japanese survivor described how she and her mother were shot in the hail of bullets. 
 
 "I was crouching down with my arms over my head, but I was shot in the ear, hand and neck," 35-year-old Noriko Yuki said from her hospital bed in comments aired by Japanese broadcaster NHK. 
 
 "My mother beside me was shot in the neck. Mother couldn't move by herself when the police came over," she added. 
 
 Among the dead were three Japanese, four Italians, two Colombians and one each from Australia, France, Poland and Spain, Essid announced on television, in what he said was a definitive toll. 
 
 However, differing figures were given by other governments and there was conflicting information over the breakdown, with some of the dead identified as joint nationals. 
 
 The nationality of a 16th victim was not given, while the identity of the final fatality had not yet been established. 
 
 The Colombian tourists were a mother and child visiting Tunisia on a family holiday, their government said. The father survived the attack. 
 
 A Tunisian bus driver and a policeman were also reported dead in the attack on the Bardo, famed for its collection of ancient artefacts. 
 
 Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland, reporting from Tunis, said there was a large police presence on the streets of the capital. 
 
 "We understand from the interior ministry that there may be other attackers or accomplices. It is believed there could be as many as three gunmen still out there." 
 
 Global condemnation 
 
 The attack appeared to be the worst on foreigners in Tunisia since an al-Qaeda suicide bombing of a synagogue killed 14 Germans, two French and five Tunisians on the island of Djerba in 2002. 
 
 It sparked outrage, with hundreds of people gathering later in a major thoroughfare of the capital, singing the national anthem and shouting slogans against the attackers, labelling them terrorists. 
 
 The assault also drew strong condemnation from world leaders, who vowed support for Tunisia. 
 
 US Secretary of State John Kerry denounced the "wanton violence" while British Prime Minister David Cameron said he was "appalled" by the attack and French President Francois Hollande expressed "solidarity" with the country. 
 
 United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon slammed the "deplorable" and "heinous" act and conveyed his "deepest sympathies" to the families of the victims. 
 
 Meanwhile the UN Security Council stressed that "no terrorist attack can reverse the path of Tunisia towards democracy". 
 
 Tunisia has seen an upsurge in Islamist dissent since the 2011 revolution that ousted longtime strongman Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. 
 
 Dozens of police and military personnel have been killed or wounded in attacks blamed on armed groups. ||||| Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The BBC's James Reynolds: "Tunisia has managed to avoid the larger wars which have hit other Arab states, but this attack... reveals its vulnerability" 
 
 A gunman involved in the attack that killed 20 tourists at the Bardo museum in Tunis was known to the authorities, Tunisia's prime minister has said. 
 
 Habib Essid told RTL Radio that security services had flagged up Yassine Laabidi, but were not aware of "anything specific" or of any links to known militant groups. 
 
 A Tunisian police officer also died in Wednesday's attack. 
 
 Both gunmen were killed. A search is on for suspects linked to them. 
 
 Two or three accomplices are still at large, an interior ministry spokesman told AFP news agency. The spokesman said both attackers were "probably" Tunisian. The second gunman has been named as Hatem Khachnaoui. 
 
 The tourists killed in the attack include visitors from Japan, Italy, Colombia, Australia, France, the UK, Poland and Spain, officials said. 
 
 On Thursday, three people - two Spanish tourists and one Tunisian museum worker - were found at the museum after having hidden there overnight, police said. 
 
 Tunisia's Culture Minister, Latifa Lakhdar, told reporters that the museum will re-open to the public early next week. 
 
 Image copyright AFP Image caption The attack targeted one of the most popular tourist attractions in Tunis 
 
 Image copyright AFP Image caption Security services eventually took control of the museum 
 
 Officials say more than 40 people, including tourists and Tunisians, were injured. The gunmen were killed after holding tourists hostage for several hours at the museum. 
 
 Speaking after the attack on national TV, Tunisia's President Beji Caid Essebsi said the country would not be cowed by terror attacks. 
 
 "These monstrous minorities do not frighten us," he said. "We will resist them until the deepest end without mercy." 
 
 At the time of the attack, deputies in the neighbouring parliament building were discussing anti-terrorism legislation. 
 
 Sayida Ounissi, an MP, told BBC Radio Four's Today programme that the security services had said the gunmen had originally planned to attack parliament. 
 
 A statement released by a jihadist media outlet gave a similar account, saying the gunmen began killing tourists after being repelled by police at the parliament. The statement did not say which group carried out the attack. 
 
 Image copyright AP Image caption Protesters lit candles and prayed at the gate of the museum 
 
 Image copyright AP Image caption Security was stepped up across Tunis, including at the museum 
 
 Many Tunisians took to the streets of central Tunis to protest against the attack, waving flags and lighting candles outside the museum. 
 
 World leaders condemned the attack and expressed their support for Tunisia's counter-terrorism efforts. 
 
 The UN Security Council issued a statement saying no terrorist action could reverse Tunisia's path towards democracy. The statement offered condolences to those affected by the attack, and called for the perpetrators to be brought to justice. 
 
 Who were the victims? 
 
 According to Tunisian authorities, 23 people were killed - though it is not clear if totals provided by the authorities include the gunmen. Some of the countries involved have given different totals and not all the dead have been identified. The dead include: 
 
 At least three Tunisians, including a police officer involved in the security operation 
 
 Five Japanese were killed, according to Mr Essid - although Japan says it has only confirmed the deaths of three citizens 
 
 Four Italians 
 
 Two Colombians 
 
 Two Spaniards 
 
 One national each from the UK, Australia, France and Poland 
 
 The attack is a huge blow for Tunisia's tourism industry and its government, which only emerged at the end of a long political transition several months ago, the BBC's Arab affairs editor Sebastian Usher says. 
 
 Islamist militants have tried to derail the democratic transition, which, although fragile, remains the most positive result of the Arab Spring in the Middle East, our correspondent adds. 
 
 Tourism is a key sector of Tunisia's economy, with large numbers of Europeans visiting the country's resorts. 
 
 In 2002, 19 people, including 11 German tourists, were killed in a bomb blast at a synagogue in the resort of Djerba. Al-Qaeda said it had carried out that attack. 
 
 Concerns about security in Tunisia have increased in recent months as neighbouring Libya has become increasingly unstable. 
 
 A large number of Tunisians have also left to fight in Syria and Iraq, triggering worries that returning militants could carry out attacks at home. 
 
 The Bardo National Museum 
 
 Image copyright AFP Image caption The museum is a major attraction in Tunisia ||||| Image copyright AFP Image caption Security is being heightened following the attack on the museum in Tunis 
 
 Nine people have been arrested in connection with a gun attack in Tunis that saw 23 people killed on Wednesday, including 20 foreign tourists. 
 
 Tunisia's presidency said four of those arrested were directly linked to the attack and five had "ties to the cell". 
 
 The army will also be deployed to major cities, the presidency added. 
 
 In another development, Islamic State said it was behind the attack on the Bardo museum, using an audio message to praise two "knights of the caliphate". 
 
 The message, posted on Twitter accounts known to be reliable sources of IS propaganda, named the attackers as Abu-Zakariya al-Tunisi and Abu-Anas al-Tunisi. 
 
 A statement described the attack as a "blessed invasion of one of the dens of infidels and vice in Muslim Tunisia". 
 
 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The BBC's Fergal Keane: "47 people are still being treated in hospital" 
 
 One of two gunmen involved in the Bardo museum attack, named by Tunisian officials as Yassine Laabidi, was reportedly known to the authorities. 
 
 Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid told RTL Radio that security services had flagged him up but were not aware of "anything specific", or of any links to known militant groups. 
 
 Laabidi and his accomplice, named as Hatem Khachnaoui, were killed as security forces stormed the museum. 
 
 It was not immediately clear how the identities of the gunmen corresponded to the names given by IS. Jihadist groups, including IS, often give their fighters noms de guerre. 
 
 Tourists from Japan, Colombia, Australia, the UK, and several other European countries were killed in the attack and more than 40 people were injured. 
 
 Analysis by Frank Gardner, BBC security correspondent 
 
 The claim by so-called Islamic State, if authentic, that it carried out Wednesday's attack in Tunis, needs to be seen in context. IS does not control any territory in Tunisia, there is no IS "province" as exists in Syria and Iraq. 
 
 Tunisia, unlike its unfortunate neighbour Libya, is a modern, functioning state with an elected government and trained police and security forces. That said, Tunisia suffers from a number of factors that make it ripe for exploitation by IS, which would surely like to include it in an eventual string of North African provinces stretching all the way from Egypt to Nigeria. 
 
 Between 3,000 and 5,000 Tunisians have gone to join IS, with an estimated 500 having returned. There is chaos to the east in Libya and jihadists hiding on the border with Algeria. There are also many young, dissatisfied Tunisians who feel economically and politically frustrated, the very reason why Tunisia became the birthplace of the Arab Spring in 2011. 
 
 Islamic State builds on al-Qaeda lands 
 
 The suspects arrested on Thursday were not identified and no further details were given of their alleged involvement. 
 
 However, BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says an al-Qaeda operative has claimed that the two gunmen had spent two months training with militants in Derna, eastern Libya, before slipping back into Tunisia. 
 
 In a statement, Tunisia's presidency said the country was facing "exceptional circumstances". 
 
 "After a meeting with the armed forces, the president has decided large cities will be secured by the army," the statement added. 
 
 Later on Thursday, US President Barack Obama called his Tunisian counterpart to Mohamed Beji Caid Essebsi to offer "sympathy, on behalf of all Americans, to the victims' families and loved ones", the White House said. 
 
 It added: "The president affirmed our continued robust co-operation on counterterrorism and broader security issues with the Tunisian government and offered continued US assistance and support in the ongoing investigation." 
 
 Tourism hit 
 
 As Tunisia attempted to come to terms with the attack, a large anti-terrorism protest took place at the site of the attack. 
 
 People carried banners calling for peace and lit candles in memory of the dead. 
 
 The BBC's Aidan Lewis, in Tunis, says many of the demonstrators were from the country's coastal elite - who often hold different views from those living in the interior. 
 
 Image copyright Twitter 
 
 Witnesses to the attack said the gunmen, carrying assault rifles, opened fire on tourists outside the museum in front of a row of buses before charging inside and taking hostages. 
 
 On Thursday, two Spanish tourists and a Tunisian museum worker were found at the museum after having hidden there overnight believing the attack might not have been over, police said. 
 
 Image copyright BBC/AFP 
 
 The attack is a huge blow for Tunisia's tourism industry and its government, which only emerged at the end of a long political transition several months ago, the BBC's Arab affairs editor Sebastian Usher says. 
 
 Two cruise companies - MSC Cruises and Costa Cruises - said they were suspending stopovers in Tunis. 
 
 MSC said in a statement that at least nine of those killed had been passengers on its MSC Splendida cruise ship which was docked in Tunis. It said another 12 of its passengers were injured and six were still unaccounted for. 
 
 Costa said that three passengers from the Costa Fascinosa had died. Eight others were injured and two were unaccounted for, company CEO Michael Thamm said. 
 
 Who were the victims? 
 
 According to Tunisian authorities, 23 people were killed - though it is not clear if totals provided by the authorities include the gunmen. Some of the countries involved have given different totals and not all the dead have been identified. The dead include: 
 
 At least three Tunisians, including a police officer involved in the security operation 
 
 Five Japanese were killed, according to Mr Essid - although Japan says it has only confirmed the deaths of three citizens 
 
 Four Italians 
 
 Two Colombians 
 
 Two Spaniards 
 
 One national each from the UK, Australia, France and Poland 
 
 Survivors' stories 
 
 Image copyright AFP Image caption The area outside the museum is still covered in blood stains from the attack 
 
 At the time of the attack, deputies in the neighbouring parliament building were discussing anti-terrorism legislation. 
 
 Sayida Ounissi, an MP, told BBC Radio Four's Today programme that according to the security services the gunmen had originally planned to attack parliament. 
 
 A statement released by a jihadist media outlet gave a similar account, saying the gunmen began killing tourists after being repelled by police at the parliament. The statement did not say which group carried out the attack. 
 
 Tunisia began a transition to democracy in 2011 with the overthrow of long-serving ruler Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali. 
 
 Hardline Islamists have tried hard to derail the process and security concerns have increased as neighbouring Libya has become increasingly unstable. 
 
 A large number of Tunisians have also left to fight in Syria and Iraq, triggering worries that returning militants could carry out attacks at home. 
 
 Tunisia's Culture Minister, Latifa Lakhdar, told reporters that the museum would re-open to the public early next week. ||||| TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — The Islamic State group claimed responsibility Thursday for the attack that killed 21 people at a museum. But Tunisian authorities said the two slain gunmen had no clear links to extremists, and analysts said existing militant cells are merely being inspired by the group, rather than establishing its presence across North Africa. 
 
 Tunisian police officers gather at the entrance of the morgue of the Charles Nicolle hospital in Tunis Tunisia, Thursday, March 19, 2015. The radical Islamic State Group claimed responsibility Thursday... (Associated Press) 
 
 A man a set up a candle on a bloodstain during a demonstration in front of the National Bardo Museum a day after gunmen attacked the museum in Tunis, Tunisia, Thursday, March 19, 2015. The Islamic State... (Associated Press) 
 
 A unidentified relative of a victim of the attack, centre, is escorted at the morgue of the Charles Nicolle hospital in Tunis Tunisia, Thursday, March 19, 2015. Authorities said more than 20 were killed... (Associated Press) 
 
 A policeman guard the entrance of the Bardo museum in Tunis, Tunisia, Thursday, March 19, 2015, as a a blood stain is seen at right, a day after gunmen opened fire killing over 20 people, mainly tourists.... (Associated Press) 
 
 Hooded police officers stand while Tunisian Interior Minister Mohamed Najem Gharsalli, right, and House Speaker Mohamed Ennaceur, second right, touch the coffin of elite security member Aymen Morjen,... (Associated Press) 
 
 Spanish tourist Cristina Rubio, left, who is four months pregnant, looks at Tunisian Health Minister Saïd Aïdi speaking to her companion Juan Carlos Sanchez, as she rests at the maternity ward of the... (Associated Press) 
 
 Spanish tourist Cristina Rubio, who is four months pregnant, shakes hands to Tunisian Health Minister Saïd Aïdi as she rests at the maternity ward of the Charles Nicolle hospital in Tunis, Tunisia, Thursday... (Associated Press) 
 
 People hold a Tunisian national flag as they demonstrate in front of the National Bardo Museum a day after gunmen attacked the museum and killed scores of people in Tunis, Tunisia, Thursday, March 19,... (Associated Press) 
 
 A woman holds a Tunisian national flag as she demonstrates in front of the National Bardo Museum a day after gunmen attacked the museum and killed scores of people in Tunis, Tunisia, Thursday, March 19,... (Associated Press) 
 
 People hold a Tunisian national flag as they demonstrate in front of the National Bardo Museum a day after gunmen attacked the museum and killed scores of people in Tunis, Tunisia, Thursday, March 19,... (Associated Press) 
 
 A woman cries as she demonstrates in front of the National Bardo Museum a day after gunmen attacked the museum and killed scores of people in Tunis, Tunisia, Thursday, March 19, 2015. The Islamic State... (Associated Press) 
 
 People walk by as as a police officer guards the National Bardo Museum in Tunis, Tunisia, Thursday, March 19, 2015. Tunisian security forces arrested nine people linked to the deadly attack on the National... (Associated Press) 
 
 A woman walks past police officers standing guard outside the National Bardo Museum in Tunis, Thursday, March 19, 2015. Tunisian security forces arrested nine people linked to the deadly attack on the... (Associated Press) 
 
 Police officers guard the entrance of the National Bardo Museum a day after gunmen opened fire killing scores of people in Tunis, Thursday, March 19, 2015. One of the gunmen who killed tourists and others... (Associated Press) 
 
 A man rides a cycle as a police officer stands guard outside the National Bardo Museum in Tunis, Thursday, March 19, 2015. Tunisian security forces arrested nine people linked to the deadly attack on... (Associated Press) 
 
 People hold a Tunisian flag during a demonstration in front of the Bardo museum in Tunis, Tunisia, Thursday, March 19, 2015, a day after gunmen opened fire killing over 20 people, mainly tourists. One... (Associated Press) 
 
 A unidentified relative of a victim of the attack, center, is escorted at the morgue of the Charles Nicolle hospital in Tunis Tunisia, Thursday, March 19, 2015. Authorities said more than 20 were killed... (Associated Press) 
 
 Spanish tourist Cristina Rubio, who is four months pregnant, rests at the maternity ward of the Charles Nicolle hospital in Tunis, Tunisia, Thursday March 19, 2015. As gunmen fired on tourists Wednesday,... (Associated Press) 
 
 A unidentified relative of a victim of the attack, center, is escorted at the morgue of the Charles Nicolle hospital in Tunis Tunisia, Thursday, March 19, 2015. Authorities said more than 20 were killed... (Associated Press) 
 
 Tunisian people attend the funerals of elite security member Aymen Morjen, Thursday March 19, 2015 in Tunis. Morjen was killed in the Wednesday attack at the Bardo National museum. The Islamic State group... (Associated Press) 
 
 Tunisian Interior Minister Mohamed Najem Gharsalli, second right, and House Speaker Mohamed Ennaceur, right, attend the funerals of elite security member Aymen Morjen, Thursday, March 19, 2015. Morjen... (Associated Press) 
 
 A man holds a placard reading: "No to terrorism" as he demonstrates in front of the National Bardo Museum a day after gunmen attacked the museum and killed scores of people in Tunis, Tunisia, Thursday,... (Associated Press) 
 
 Police announced the arrest of five people described as directly tied to the two gunmen who opened fire Wednesday at the National Bardo Museum. Four others said to be supporters of the cell also were arrested in central Tunisia, not far from where a group claiming allegiance to al-Qaida's North African branch has been active. 
 
 Tunisians stepped around trails of blood and broken glass outside the museum to rally in solidarity with the 21 victims — most of them foreign tourists from cruise ships — and with the country's fledgling democracy. Marchers carried signs saying, "No to terrorism," and "Tunisia is bloodied but still standing." 
 
 In claiming responsibility for the attack, the Islamic State group issued a statement and audio on jihadi websites applauding the dead gunmen as "knights" for their "blessed invasion of one of the dens of infidels and vice in Muslim Tunisia." 
 
 Several well-armed groups in neighboring and chaotic Libya have already pledged their allegiance to Islamic State based in Iraq and Syria, but the attack of such magnitude in Tunisia — the only country to emerge from the Arab Spring uprisings with a functioning democracy — raised concern about the spread of extremism to the rest of North Africa. 
 
 Analysts cautioned against seeing every such attack as evidence of a well-organized, centrally controlled entity spanning the Middle East, saying instead that small groups could merely be taking inspiration from the high-profile militant group. 
 
 "I think (the Islamic State) is probably taking credit for something it may not have played a role in," said Geoff Porter, a security analyst for North Africa. 
 
 Even as it is under pressure from rival militias in Libya and U.S.-backed forces in Iraq, the extremist group appears to be trying to raise its profile by associating itself with attacks around the region. 
 
 Confronted with a poor economy, young Tunisians have disproportionately gone abroad to fight with extremist groups in Libya, Syria and Iraq, including some affiliated with the Islamic State. Upon their return home, some may have decided to carry out attacks on their own. 
 
 Tunisian authorities have estimated that of the 3,000 young people who left the country to fight with radical groups, about 500 have returned. 
 
 "It could have been people who fought with the Islamic State or were inspired by it," said Raffaello Pantucci, director of International Security Studies at the Royal United Services Institute, a British think tank. "Some guys may have come back, not liked what the government is doing, and attacked the tourist industry to hurt the economy — a classic move." 
 
 Until now, Tunisia's most deadly group was the Oqba Ibn Nafaa brigade, which is allied to al-Qaida and based in the mountains near the Algerian border. Previously, it has confined its attacks to political figures and security services. 
 
 "While Tunisia's ultra-radical Islamist fringe was most associated with al-Qaida, there is no reason why the jihadi underground shouldn't have changed its tutelage," said Jon Marks, associate fellow at Chatham House, a London think tank. "However, whether this 'rebranding' goes as far as direct command and compliance structures is far from clear." 
 
 While militant attacks may not necessarily have been centrally planned, they have succeeded in spreading fear and damaging the economy — and giving the impression of an all-powerful radical Islamic network extending its reach. 
 
 Tunisia is particularly vulnerable to such attacks because its economy has struggled since the country became the birthplace of the Arab Spring by overthrowing its dictator in 2011. 
 
 At a news conference Thursday, Prime Minister Habib Essid announced new security measures around the country, including a crackdown on websites seen as promoting terrorism. 
 
 On Thursday, U.S. President Barack Obama spoke with Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi by phone to offer his condolences, sympathy and support. The White House says Obama offered to keep providing assistance to Tunisia as the investigation proceeds. 
 
 The deaths of so many foreigners will damage Tunisia's tourism industry, which draws thousands of foreigners to its Mediterranean beaches, desert oases and ancient Roman ruins. The industry had just started to recover after years of decline. 
 
 Two cruise ships that had 17 passengers among the dead quickly left the port of Tunis early Thursday, citing safety concerns, and the vessels' operators suspended visits to the country. 
 
 Culture Minister Latifa Lakhdar gave a defiant news conference at the museum, where blood still stained the floor amid the Roman-era mosaics. 
 
 "They are targeting knowledge. They are targeting science. They are targeting reason. They are targeting history. They are targeting memory, because all these things mean nothing in their eyes," she told reporters. 
 
 In the afternoon, authorities opened the gates of the museum for a rally in defiance of the bloodshed. About 500 people — some carrying flowers for the victims — held a moment of silence before singing Tunisia's national anthem. Participants included black-robed lawyers, families with children, and teenagers swathed in the red-and-white Tunisian flag. 
 
 A funeral was held for Aymen Morjen — an elite member of Tunisia's security force who was killed at the museum. Interior Minister Mohamed Najem Gharsalli and House Speaker Mohamed Ennaceur attended the service. 
 
 It was among the museum's Roman-era mosaics that the militants dressed in military uniforms and armed with grenades and assault rifles took hostages and began shooting the foreigners. 
 
 "Suddenly, we started to hear the gunshots, so we all tried to escape and all of us tried to save ourselves as best we could," said Bruna Scherini, an Italian who arrived by cruise ship. She told Sky TG24 from her hospital bed: "We tried to hide behind the exhibits and in the corners where there was a little hiding place." 
 
 A Spanish man and a pregnant Spanish woman who survived hid in the museum all night in fear. Spain's foreign minister said police searched all night before Juan Carlos Sanchez and Cristina Rubio were found Thursday morning by security forces. 
 
 The Health Ministry said the death toll rose to 23 on Thursday — 20 of them foreign tourists. Nearly 50 people were wounded. Three Tunisians were killed, including the two attackers. 
 
 Dr. Samar Samoud of the Health Ministry said six of the dead foreigners remained unidentified. She listed the rest of the foreign victims as three from Japan, three from France, two from Spain, and one each from Australia, Colombia, Britain, Poland, Belgium and Italy. 
 
 The Costa Crociere cruise line said four Italians and a Russian were among the dead. It was not immediately clear whether they were the victims not yet identified by the ministry. MSC Cruises said 12 of its guests were killed. 
 
 The two cruise lines said they suspended visits to Tunisian following the attack. 
 
 MSC chairman Pierfrancesco Vago said the company hoped to return to Tunisia, but that for now tourists view it as a "no-go zone." MSC said it was suspending Tunisian ports of call for the rest of the 2015 summer season, with its ships docking instead in Malta, Palma de Mallorca, Sardinia or Corfu, Greece. Costa didn't say how long its suspension would last and that it was still figuring out alternative itineraries. 
 
 The two Spaniards who died were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary, and it was the first time they had traveled outside Spain, the Spanish foreign minister said. Their two children were flying to Tunis to retrieve the bodies. 
 
 ___ 
 
 Schemm reported from Rabat. Associated Press reporters John-Thor Dahlburg in Brussels, Maggie Michael in Cairo, Nicole Winfield in Rome, Jeff Schaeffer and Bouazza ben Bouazza in Tunis, Monika Scislowska in Warsaw, Harold Heckle in Madrid, Lori Hinnant in Paris and Josh Lederman in Washington contributed to this report. ||||| TUNIS Gunmen wearing military uniforms stormed Tunisia's national museum on Wednesday, killing 17 foreign tourists and two Tunisians in one of the worst militant attacks in a country that had largely escaped the region's "Arab Spring" turmoil. 
 
 Five Japanese as well as visitors from Italy, Poland and Spain were among the dead in the noon assault on Bardo museum inside the heavily guarded parliament compound in central Tunis, Prime Minister Habib Essid said. 
 
 "They just started opening fire on the tourists as they were getting out of the buses ... I couldn't see anything except blood and the dead," the driver of a tourist coach told journalists at the scene. 
 
 Scores of visitors fled into the museum and the militants - who authorities did not immediately link to any extremist group - took hostages inside, officials said. Security forces entered around two hours later, killed two militants and freed the captives, a government spokesman said. A police officer died in the operation. 
 
 The attack on such a high-profile target is a blow for the small North African country that relies heavily on European tourism and has mostly avoided major militant violence since its 2011 uprising to oust autocrat Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali. 
 
 Several Islamist militant groups have emerged in Tunisia since the uprising, and authorities estimate about 3,000 Tunisians have also joined fighters in Iraq and Syria -- igniting fears they could return and mount attacks at home. 
 
 "All Tunisians should be united after this attack which was aimed at destroying the Tunisian economy," Prime Minister Essid declared in a national address. 
 
 The local stock exchange dropped nearly 2.5 percent and two German tour operators said they were cancelling trips from Tunisia's beach resorts to Tunis for a few days. 
 
 Accor, Europe’s largest hotel group, said it had tightened security at its two hotels in Tunisia. 
 
 U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry joined leaders from Europe condemning the attack and said Washington continued "to support the Tunisian government's efforts to advance a secure, prosperous, and democratic Tunisia." 
 
 Television footage showed dozens of people, including elderly foreigners and one man carrying a child, running for shelter in the museum compound, covered by security forces aiming rifles into the air. 
 
 The Tunisian premier said 17 tourists were killed, including four Italians, a French citizen, a Pole, two Colombians, five Japanese, an Australian and two Spaniards. He had previous mentioned a German fatality, but did not mention that in later statements. Two Tunisians were killed. 
 
 The museum is known for its collection of ancient Tunisian artifacts and mosaics and other treasures from classical Rome and Greece. There were no immediate reports that the attackers had copied Islamic State militants in Iraq by targeting exhibits seen by hardliners as idolatrous. 
 
 Bardo's white-walled halls set in the parliament compound are one of the most popular tourist attractions in the Tunisian capital. Many tourists come for day trips to Tunis from nearby Mediterranean beach resorts. 
 
 Shocked but defiant, hundreds of Tunisians later gathered in the streets of downtown Tunis waving the country's red and white crescent flag, and chanting against terrorism. 
 
 "I pass this message to Tunisians, that democracy will win and it will survive," President Beji Caid Essebsi said in a television statement. "We will find more ways and equipment for the army to wipe out these barbarous groups for good." 
 
 A MODEL OF COMPROMISE 
 
 Tunisia's uprising inspired "Arab Spring" revolts in neighboring Libya and in Egypt, Syria and Yemen. But its adoption of a new constitution and staging of largely peaceful elections had won widespread praise and stood in stark contrast to the chaos that has plagued those countries. 
 
 After a crisis between secular leaders and the Islamist party which won the country's first post-revolt election, Tunisia has emerged as a model of compromise politics and transition to democracy for the region. 
 
 But the attack comes at a challenging time with Tunisia planning to reform its economy and cutback on public spending. Tourism represents around 7 percent of the gross domestic product. 
 
 Security forces have already clashed with some Islamist militants, including Ansar al-Sharia which is listed as a terrorist group by Washington. But until Wednesday most attacks were in remote areas, often near the border with Algeria. 
 
 Another group is holed up in the mountains along the Algerian border where the army has spent months trying to destroy their camps. 
 
 Affiliates of Islamic State militants fighting in Iraq and Syria have also been gaining ground in North Africa, especially in the chaotic environment of Tunisia's neighbor Libya, where two rival governments are battling for control. 
 
 A senior Tunisian militant was killed while fighting for Islamic State in the Libyan city of Sirte over the past week. Security sources said he had been operating training camps and logistics. 
 
 "An attack like this could strike the fragile transition in Tunisia, especially the tourism industry," said local political analyst Nourredine Mbarki. "The problem is now these groups have gone from being in mountains and borders to hit the capital and targets with high security." 
 
 Wednesday's assault was the worst attack involving foreigners in Tunisia since an al Qaeda suicide bombing on a synagogue killed 21 people on the tourist island of Djerba in 2002. 
 
 The most recent attack on the tourism industry in 2013 when a militant blew himself up at the Tunisian beach resort of Sousse, but no one else was killed or wounded. Another bomber was caught at a presidential monument before he blew himself up. 
 
 (Additional reporting by Valentina Consiglio in Italy; Writing by Patrick Markey; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Diane Craft) ||||| TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — The latest news from an attack on a beach resort in Tunisia (all times local): 
 
 EDS NOTE: GRAPHIC CONTENT - In this photo dated Friday, June 26, 2015 the body of the attacker Seifeddine Rezgui lies on the ground in the costal town of Sousse, Tunisia. Tunisia's Prime Minister says... (Associated Press) 
 
 In this photo dated Friday, June 26, 2015 the body of the attacker Seifeddine Rezgui lies on the ground in the costal town of Sousse, Tunisia. Tunisia's Prime Minister says an initial investigation shows... (Associated Press) 
 
 A pool of blood is seen on the ground near the area where a terrorist attack took place in the coastal town of Sousse, Tunisia, Friday June 26, 2015. A young man unfurled an umbrella and pulled out a... (Associated Press) 
 
 Pools of blood are seen on the ground near the area where an attack took place in Sousse coastal town of Sousse, Tunisia, Friday June 26, 2015. A young man unfurled an umbrella and pulled out a Kalashnikov,... (Associated Press) 
 
 A police officer walks past a body covered near a Tunisian beach, in Sousse, Friday June 26, 2015. A young man unfurled an umbrella and pulled out a Kalashnikov, opening fire on European sunbathers in... (Associated Press) 
 
 A tourist walks amongst security forces after a terrorist attack which took place in the coastal town of Sousse, Tunisia, Friday June 26, 2015. A young man unfurled an umbrella and pulled out a Kalashnikov,... (Associated Press) 
 
 In this photo dated Friday, June 26, 2015, Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi, left, visits a survivor of a terrorist attack, right, in an hospital in the costal town of Sousse, Tunisia. A young man... (Associated Press) 
 
 Tunisian police officers stay in the lobby of an hotel where a terrorist attack took place in the coastal town of Sousse, Tunisia, Friday June 26, 2015. A young man unfurled an umbrella and pulled out... (Associated Press) 
 
 An injured person is treated on a Tunisian beach, in Sousse, Friday June 26, 2015. A young man unfurled an umbrella and pulled out a Kalashnikov, opening fire on European sunbathers in an attack that... (Associated Press) 
 
 In this photo dated Friday, June 26, 2015, Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi, left, visits a survivor of a terrorist attack in an hospital in the costal town of Sousse, Tunisia. A young man pulled... (Associated Press) 
 
 In this photo dated Friday, June 26, 2015, Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi, 2nd right, visits a survivor of a terrorist attack in an hospital in the costal town of Sousse, Tunisia. A young man pulled... (Associated Press) 
 
 Bodies are covered on a Tunisian beach, in Sousse, Friday June 26, 2015. A young man unfurled an umbrella and pulled out a Kalashnikov, opening fire on European sunbathers in an attack that killed at... (Associated Press) 
 
 In this photo dated Friday, June 26, 2015, Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi, 2nd left, visits a survivor of a terrorist attack in an hospital in the costal town of Sousse, Tunisia. A young man pulled... (Associated Press) 
 
 ___ 
 
 12.00 a.m. 
 
 The Tunisian Ministry of Health has confirmed the nationalities of 10 of the 39 victims of the terror attack in the beach resort town Sousse. 
 
 It said Saturday they included eight Britons, a Belgian and a German. 
 
 The Irish government has also confirmed an Irish citizen was among those killed by a lone gunman, who has been identified as Seifeddine Rezgui. He was killed by police who responded to the attack on Friday. 
 
 The health ministry said it has authorized the transfer of the deceased to the Charles Nicolle hospital in Tunis to accelerate their repatriation. 
 
 ___ 
 
 11.50 a.m. 
 
 Tour operators from across Europe are evacuating their customers from Tunisia and cancelling travels to the country after the terror attack at a beach resort that left 39 people dead. 
 
 British travel companies Thomson and First Choice say thousands of tourists are being flown back home from Tunisia Saturday and they are cancelling all flights to Tunisia in the coming week. Britain's largest travel association, ABTA, says it estimates that some 20,000 British tourists are currently on holiday in Tunisia. 
 
 Major tour operators in Denmark, Sweden and Norway said they have stopped all travels to Tunisia for the rest of the season although the Scandinavian foreign ministries have warned its citizens to be vigilant and not advised them against travelling there. 
 
 A spokesman for the Slovak Foreign Ministry, Peter Stano, said Slovakia is sending a passenger jet to Tunisia for about 150 of some 600 Slovak tourists who are currently in Tunisia and who wish to return home after the attack. 
 
 ___ 
 
 11.35 a.m. 
 
 At Tunisia's Hammamet airport tourists were lining up to leave the country after the terror attack in the beach resort town Sousse that left 39 people dead. 
 
 Even those who weren't staying in Sousse as visitors said they cut their vacations short out of fear. 
 
 Kathrin Schneider, a German tourist, said she stayed some 40-50 kilometers (25-30 miles) from Sousse and had felt safe during the whole holiday. 
 
 "But as soon as we heard, we were quite happy to leave because you don't feel that safe anymore if something happens like that," she said. "They can come to the beach where we stayed as well so we were happy to leave." 
 
 "A lot of people in our hotel left today," she added. 
 
 She said many had families and "if you have kids to look after, it's probably better to leave." 
 
 ___ 
 
 11.25 a.m. 
 
 The government of Ireland has confirmed that an Irish nurse has been killed in the terrorist attack on tourists in Tunisia. 
 
 Relatives and family friends say Lorna Carty was fatally shot as she sunbathed. She and her husband, Declan, had received the holiday as a present to help Declan Carty relax following his recent heart surgery. Family friends speaking to the couple's two children say Lorna Carty went ahead of her husband to the beach, where she suffered fatal gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead in hospital. 
 
 The couple, both aged in their 50s, lived in the village of Robinstown northwest of Dublin where the Cartys run a dairy farm. She worked as a nurse in a local private clinic. At the time of Friday's attacks, their 18-year-old daughter was holidaying with friends in Turkey while their 21-year-old son was home minding the farm. 
 
 Irish Foreign Minister Charlie Flanagan says Ireland's diplomat responsible for Tunisia, Ambassador to Spain David Cooney, was arriving Saturday in Tunisia to help determine whether other Irish nationals were wounded or killed in Friday's attack. 
 
 Tourist flights from Ireland to Tunisia have continued in the wake of the attack, but travel agents are offering full refunds for those canceling. A flight Friday night to the Tunisian city of Monastir, another coastal tourism center south of Friday's attack, left Dublin after a three-hour delay with about 110 of the booked 170 passengers aboard. 
 
 ___ 
 
 11.15 a.m. 
 
 The head of the Imperial Marhaba Hotel says everyone is being vacated from the hotel that was at the center of the attack at a Tunisian beach resort that left 39 people dead. 
 
 Mohammed Becheur said Saturday that before the attack, 75 percent of the hotel's 370 rooms were booked, one of the highest occupancy rates in the resort city of Sousse. 
 
 "We may have zero clients today, but we will keep our staff," he said outside the hotel a day after the rampage by a lone gunman. "This summer will be hard but we are confident for the long term." 
 
 The beach area behind the hotel is blocked off and being patrolled by plainclothes men with guns. The chaise lounges and straw umbrellas are all carefully in place. Three Germans laid flowers on an overturned beach chair. 
 
 Employees at the nearby Mouradia Palace hotel expressed fear that they would soon be out of jobs as the attack comes right at the start of high season. 
 
 ___ 
 
 10.40 a.m. 
 
 Belgian tourist Clause Besser has described from his hospital bed how he heard gunshots on the beach in a Tunisian resort town and tried to flee as a gunman killed at least 39 people. 
 
 Besser recounted early Saturday how he took a bullet as he ran away from the shooter at the beach in Sousse. 
 
 "It's really sad but what can you do, for everyone, for the tourists, for the people who died, for their families," he said. 
 
 "For me, somehow, with a bullet in the leg, it's not a catastrophe. For those who died or injured for life, it's something else," he added. 
 
 Tunisia's Prime Minister Habib Essid has identified the shooter, who was killed by police after the attack, as Seifeddine Rezgui. According to the SITE intelligence group, the Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the attack. 
 
 ___ 
 
 10.00 a.m. 
 
 Tunisia's prime minister says an initial investigation shows the gunman who killed at least 39 people at a beach resort was from a village in a poor central region of Tunisia and had never traveled abroad. 
 
 Habib Essid said Seifeddine Rezgui, who was killed by police after the attack Friday in Sousse, was not previously known by authorities. He said he came from the town of Gaafour in the governorate of Siliana and had been a student at Kairouan university. 
 
 The Islamic State group has claimed credit for the attack, identifying the gunman by his jihadi pseudonym Abu Yahya al-Qayrawani, the SITE Intelligence Group has reported. 
 
 The attack was one of three from Europe to North Africa to the Middle East that followed a call to violence by IS extremists. 
 
 According to the prime minister, the victims included many Britons, as well as Germans, Belgian and French. 
 
 ___ 
 
 9.10 a.m. 
 
 The morning after a lone gunman killed at least 39 people at a beach resort in Tunisia, busloads of tourists are heading to the nearby Enfidha-Hammamet airport hoping to return to their home countries. 
 
 The attack in the Tunisian resort of Sousse was the worst ever in the country and came just months after the March 18 massacre at the national Bardo museum in Tunis that left 22 people dead, again mostly tourists. It is expected to deal a heavy blow to the country's tourism industry, which accounts for nearly 15 percent if Tunisia's gross domestic product. 
 
 British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has said a high proportion of the casualties is likely to be British and U.K. tour operator Thomas Cook was among the travel agents that started evacuating its customers from Tunisia Saturday. 
 
 It said on Twitter it has arranged an additional plane to depart from Tunisia to fly home anyone wishing to leave. ||||| CLOSE Dozens of people, mostly tourists, were killed when a lone gunman stormed a resort in Tunisia and opened fire. He was shot dead by security forces. Wochit 
 
 The morning after a lone gunman killed dozens of people at a beach resort in Sousse, Tunisia, busloads of tourists are evacuating to their home countries. (Photo: Darko Vojinovic, AP) 
 
 Corrections & Clarifications: An earlier version of this article misidentified the nationality of victim Lorna Carty. She is Irish. 
 
 Stories of terror and bravery emerged Saturday as foreign visitors rushed to leave Tunisia by the busload after a gunman opened fire on a beach resort, killing 38 people. 
 
 At least 39 people were wounded in the nation's deadliest onslaught Friday before the shooter was killed by security forces. The gunman was identified as Seifeddine Rezgui, 24, by Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid. 
 
 "The fight against terrorism is a national responsibility," Essid said Saturday as his government announced a raft of new measures to right terrorism. "We are at war against terrorism which represents a serious danger to national unity during this delicate period that the nation is going through." 
 
 Busloads of tourists were cutting their vacations short Saturday and making their way to the Enfidha-Hammamet airport with the hope of returning home, the Associated Press reported. Britain announced at least 15 of its citizens were among the dead and said that toll could rise. 
 
 Among the Britons killed in the attack was Carly Lovett, a fashion photographer, according to The Daily Express of London. Another victim was Lorna Carty, an Irish mother of two. 
 
 Among the injured was gas engineer Matthew James, 30, who was shot in the shoulder, chest and hip as he acted as a human shield to save his fiancee, Sarah Wilson, the paper said. 
 
 "He took a bullet for me. I owe him my life because he threw himself in front of me when the shooting started," Wilson, 26, told the paper from the hospital in Tunisia where James was recovering from surgery. 
 
 Briton Tom Richards, 22, who was at the hotel with his mother, Sam, and his brother, Calum, 16, told the British newspaper The Guardian he came face to face with the shooter, but escaped with only minor injuries. 
 
 Tom and Sam Richards were at the pool when they heard gunfire at the beach and ran for cover inside the hotel. Tunisian staff ushered them to an upper floor, where they huddled with about 20 other confused and frightened guests, he said. But the gunman followed the same route on his rampage. 
 
 "He shot two people, through the head," as they were standing on the stairs, Richards said. 
 
 Then he pointed his gun at Richards. "He looked right at me, I thought I was dead... He had long black hair and a beard," he said. 
 
 But when the man fired, he fired at the ground, wounding Richards, his mother and others in the area with shards of marble. Richards told the paper he and his mother hid in a nearby bathroom, where he bandaged wounds to his wrist and her ankle with toilet paper. 
 
 Outside the bathroom, they heard more shooting and people screaming that they were wounded, "but we couldn't step out to see," Richards said. He did help a young woman who had a large shard of marble embedded in her thigh, and together the three waited until security officials arrived and told them they were safe. 
 
 The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, according to SITE Intelligence Group, a U.S.-based organization that monitors terrorists' activity online. 
 
 Rezgui — whom the Islamic State called by his jihadi pseudonym, Abu Yahya al-Qayrawani — was radicalized at mosques in Kairouan, where he earned his degree in electronics and enrolled in a master's program at a local sciences and technology university, Radio Mosaique reported. Kairouan is located about 40 miles west of Sousse. 
 
 Rezgui was not known to authorities before the attack, Essid said. He was from a village in a poor central region of Tunisia and had never traveled abroad, local media reported. Rezgui's parents were arrested at their home, where police also seized documents linked to extremism, according to the Tunisialive news site. 
 
 Rezgui's neighbors said he was a normal young man in college — respectable, friendly and quiet, Radio Mosaique reported. Nobody saw signs of radicalization in his behavior. Radio Mosaique reported that Rezgui trained in a extremist camp, but the location of the camp isn't clear. Other reports have said he never traveled outside of Tunisia. 
 
 Tunisian security forces had been on alert since March when two Tunisian gunmen opened fire on the Bardo museum in Tunis, killing 22 people, mostly tourists. Two gunmen were killed in that attack, for which the Islamic State also claimed credit. 
 
 The second terrorist attack this year to center on tourists is likely to deal a heavy blow to the country's tourism industry, which accounts for nearly 15% of Tunisia's gross domestic product. 
 
 The Tunisian attack was one of three deadly terror incidents to hit three separate nations Friday. In France, a man once placed on a "radicalization list" drove his truck into a U.S.- owned gas factory, triggering an explosion as his boss' severed head was found at the entrance, authorities said. In Kuwait, about two dozen people were killed in an Islamic State attack on a Shiite mosque during prayers. 
 
 Dorell reported from McLean, Va. Contributing: Moenes Sboui in Tunis, Tunisia. 
 
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– "We are in a war with terror, and these savage minority groups will not frighten us," Tunisia's President Beji Caid Essebsi vowed in the wake of a terrorist attack that has now killed 18 foreign tourists and three Tunisians, plus the two gunmen. "The fight against them will continue until they are exterminated," he said in a speech last night, per the Guardian. He promised that "democracy will win and it will survive" as large numbers of demonstrators gathered in Tunis to protest the attack, reports Reuters. Meanwhile, ISIS militants today claimed responsibility for the attack, reports the BBC. But in a bright spot, two Spanish tourists who hid in the museum all night have now been found safe; Juan Carlos Sanchez tells the AP that "we thought the terrorists were still outside. But it was simply the police who were searching for people." Cristina Rubio is four months pregnant; both are fine. In other developments: Prime Minister Habib Essi says one of the two gunmen, Yassine Laabidi, was known to authorities, but security services were unaware of links to militant groups, the BBC reports. Both gunmen were killed by security forces, and authorities say they're still hunting several accomplices. Tunisia has now detained a total of nine people. Officials say tourists from Japan, Italy, Colombia, Australia, France, Poland, and Spain were killed in the attack, according to the BBC. Poland, which has sent a plane with doctors to help treat the injured, says two of its citizens were killed, two are missing, and nine are among the 40 or so wounded, the AP reports. Tunisia, birthplace of the Arab Spring, is the "Arab world's most successful democracy," which may have made it more of a target, but there are fears the attack could lead to greater authoritarianism, reports the New York Times. ISIS supporters are praising the attack online, as per the Times. The Telegraph reports that Tunisian media are speculating that Ahmed al-Rouissi, the country's most-wanted terrorist, may be involved. The Tunisian government says he became a senior ISIS leader in Libya and was killed in fighting last weekend. Tunisian officials have speculated that the adjacent Parliament building may have been the attackers' initial target, and that they may have switched to the museum because it had less security, the New York Times reports.