Tunisia terror victims call in lawyers over resort security

A book and flowers lay at the scene of the attack in Sousse, Tunisia. Photo / AP

Survivors call in lawyers to question whether security was adequate at resort in Sousse where 30 Britons were massacred by jihadi terrorist Seifeddine Rezgui

Victims of the Tunisian terror attack are considering legal action against the tour operators and hotel owners at the resort where 30 British tourists were massacred.

Nine survivors have instructed lawyers to begin investigations into the atrocity amid concern over the lack of security in Sousse.

Seifeddine Rezgui, 23, a jihadi terrorist, went on the rampage on June 26, armed with a Kalashnikov rifle, killing 38 tourists, most of them British. Armed also with home-made bombs and grenades, his killing spree stopped only when he ran out of ammunition.

The attack followed a series of terrorist incidents in Tunisia, including a failed attempt to blow up tourists on the same stretch of beach in October 2013 and the

attack on the Bardo National Museum in Tunis in March in which 23 people, including 19 tourists, died.

The Telegraph reported concerns of survivors who complained they were told by tour operators it was safe to travel to Tunisia. An audit by Olivier Guitta, a terrorism expert, found evidence of 50 terrorist attacks in Tunisia since 2013.

Irwin Mitchell, one of the country's biggest law firms dealing with personal injury claims, has been instructed by survivors to begin its own inquiry, not least into whether tourists were made aware of the dangers of travelling to the area.

Legal claims by victims and their families could total tens of millions of pounds.

Clive Garner, head of Irwin Mitchell's international personal injury team, said: "Now the remaining tourists have come home, questions need to be answered as to whether the security measures on the beach and in the surrounding hotels in Sousse at the time of the attack were at an appropriate level.

"British holidaymakers and other witnesses have raised concerns about the lack of visible security in and around the resort, which is at odds with the level of threat in the region. We think there are areas worthy of investigation."

Survivor Kirsty Murray, 25, remains in hospital in the UK after being shot in both legs. She also suffered shrapnel injuries following an explosion at the Riu Imperial Marhaba Hotel.

The nursery worker and her fiancé, Radley Ruszkiewicz, were sunbathing by the hotel's pool when Rezgui entered, having already murdered a number of tourists on the beach.

Miss Murray's father Neil, from Colchester in Essex, said: "From my experience of being out there just hours after the attack happened, I feel there are unanswered questions about the security in and around the area.

"That close to Libya and Algeria where there have also been incidents in recent years, I'd have thought security would be much tighter."

Just over a month before the attack, an armed group which has claimed allegiance to the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil), tweeted a warning to Western tourists.

It said: "To the Christians planning their summer vacations in Tunisia, we can't accept you in our land while your jets keep killing our Muslim Brothers in Iraq & Sham [the Levant]. But if you insist on coming, then beware because we are planning for you something that will make you forget Bardo attack."

TUI, the travel conglomerate that owns Thomson, the tour operator, and the Imperial Marhaba hotel, has confirmed that 33 of the fatal victims were its customers, including all 30 Britons.

A Thomson spokesman said the company had stepped up security in the wake of the Bardo museum attack in March and that it had followed Foreign Office travel advice, which did not prohibit travel to Tunisia.

The Foreign Office travel advice to Tunisia after the Bardo attack did not explicitly prohibit travelling to the area but it stated: "There is a high threat from terrorism, including kidnapping. Attacks could be indiscriminate, including in places visited by foreigners."

The Foreign Office now advises "against all but essential travel" to Tunisia.