Tunisia terror attack: Yorkshire tourists witness shooting
Local holidaymakers were caught up in a bloody shooting in Tunisia when gunmen began firing on innocents.
Image: chervonec/Instagram.
At least two tourists from Yorkshire were on a beach with others when gunmen attacked the Imperial Hotel and Hotel Club Riu Bellevue at Port El Kantaoui, near Sousse, earlier today.
According to the BBC, Debbie Horsfall from Huddersfield told how she and her friend Ellie Makin from Ripon ran from the beach after hearing gunshots.
“We just want to go home”
She said: “I’m staying at the Belleview Park Hotel, next door from what’s been happening. I was on the beach with my friend sunbathing when I heard gunfire. My friend stood up and saw a man with the gun firing. We got up and ran, but we didn’t know where to go.
“We have only been here two days – we came on Wednesday. We went back to our room but we didn’t feel safe. We just want to go home – we packed right away.”
The Foreign Office issued travel advice.
Ellie said a gunman was beside her on the beach when he began to fire.
She said: “He was to the right of me. I got up and just happened to look right and I saw the gun and the umbrella being dropped and then he started firing to the right. If he had fired to the left I don’t know what would have happened. We’re quite lucky.”
A number of people have been killed and injured in the attack.
At least one gunman has been shot dead and another is being pursued, officials say.
Hotel statement
Majorca-based Riu Hotel Group, which the Imperial Marhaba Hotel is part of, has said in a statement: “While the Tunisian authorities keep working in the area and guests are being taken care of, the information about the attack at the Riu Imperial Marhaba Hotel is still limited.
“When the attack occurred, the occupancy rate at the hotel was 77% with 565 guests at the moment of the attack.
“The majority of the guests are from the UK and other central European countries. However, it is not possible at the moment to confirm the nationalities or any other details of the victims.
“The Riu Imperial Marhaba hotel is a 5 star property with 366 rooms. The hotel has a beachfront located in the resort area of Port El Kanaoui, where RIU operates two hotels more. In total, RIU has 10 hotels in Tunisia with 3.586 rooms.”
Any British nationals in the hotels or nearby have been urged to remain indoors.
