Roundup: Tunisia arrests 8 prime suspects over beachhead attacks, intensive security measures taken

Eight suspects directly involved with the Sousse Hotel attack were arrested and 12 others were interrogated by security forces, prime minister's office said on Thursday.

Kamel Jendoubi, minister in charge of civil society relations within the office, said eight suspects, including a woman, were arrested for directly supporting the terrorist attack of the Sousse Hotel.

"The war against terrorism is arduous, and we need to develop stamina to fight it. We may win some battles and lose some. But at the end we will prevail," said Jendoubi during a press conference.

Two Imams from different mosques in Sousse received warnings, and 80 mosques will be closed down by the end of the week, added Jendoubi.

Following the exceptional security measures announced by Prime Minister Habib Essid, mosques not registered with the Ministry of Religious Affairs will be closed.

Additionally, the Ettahrir Party received a warning and the government demanded they introduce amendments to their fundamental law to clarify their agenda.

Since March 2015 security forces conducted over 7000 raids, 1000 suspects were arrested and 120 others were classified as wanted, following the terrorist attack against the Bardo museum in Tunis.

"From now on, each hotel's security status will be taken into consideration when classifying them," said Jendoubi.

Over 1300 armed security agents were allocated along the coast near hotels in order to protect tourists and touristic destinations. The Interior Ministry aims to provide two armed officers on the beach and two others inside each hotel.

Moreover, a law is being drafted to allow for the use of a substitute army to guard sensitive institutions and locations, according to Jendoubi.

"This is a clear-cut war. It is not between Tunisians and Tunisians, but rather between democratic Tunisia, terrorism and Jihadists," added Jendoubi.

Most of the victims were British citizens. Consequently, the British government sent 10 British investigators as part of the investigation team in the Sousse Hotel attack.

The victims also included a Portuguese national, a Belgian, a Russian and several German tourists. All of the bodies were identified and injured victims were transported back to their countries, except for one currently still under medical supervision.

The public prosecution spokesperson held another conference at the First Instance Court of Tunis Thursday, during which he confirmed the investigation progress.

"This is an intense file. The information and details we have about this file are rather important and quite dangerous," stated Sofiane Selliti, prosecution spokesperson.

The deadly incident took place June 26th and led to the death of 38 tourists, mostly British, and injured 39 individuals, including Tunisians.

The gunman, Seifeddine Rezgui, a 23-year-old student, was shot dead by security agents. Libya's Islamic State section, also known as Daesh, claimed responsibility for the attack and referred to Rezgui as Abu Yahya Kayrawani.

A security source told the Associated Press that Rezgui was trained in Libya.

However, official sources have not yet confirmed any further information about Rezgui's recruitment by Daesh. Endit