At Least 27 Killed As Gunmen Attack Beach Outside 2 Tourist Hotels In Tunisia

Sky News screengrab

The hotels are in the tourist complex of Port El Kantaoui, some 10 km from the city of Sousse in central Tunisia.

A beach outside two hotels in central Tunisia have been attacked, with at least 27 dead and panic being reported at the scene. Two gunmen armed with Kalashnikov rifles reportedly penetrated a private area and opened fire.

One of the hotels is the five-star Imperial Marhaba. The Interior Ministry confirms around 27 people are dead, foreigners among them.

The ministry said the death toll in what is considered a terror attack could rise. Local media say over 20 people have been injured.

"It happened about half an hour ago – I heard a bang and I thought it was thunder but it was a clear sky so it obviously wasn't," a witness told Sky News. "I heard sirens going off about 20 minutes ago and everyone came running back from the private hotel beach which is about 400 metres from the hotel. Everyone is a bit clueless about what is happening."

"We were told to go back to our rooms because there were reports of a bomb," another witness staying at a hotel near-by also told The Daily Mail.

Witnesses say they were first told to leave the beach and lock themselves in their rooms, and later to gather in the lobby.

The hotels are in the tourist complex of Port El Kantaoui, some 10 km from the city of Sousse in central Tunisia.

Photos showing at least two dead bodies and a suspected gunman killed by security forces are circulating on the web. The other gunman has reportedly been captured.

Sousse is one of Tunisia's most popular beach resorts, which attracts tourists from Europe as well as neighboring countries.

The North African country has been on high alert since Islamist gunmen attacked the Bardo museum in the capital of Tunis in March, killing 22 people including foreign tourists. Islamic State militants claimed responsibility for that attack.