TUNIS: A Tunisian soldier the authorities say had psychological problems seized a gun at a barracks on Monday and killed seven comrades before being shot dead himself.

The interior ministry said the rampage was not linked to “terrorism”, but a defence ministry spokesman did not rule this out before an investigation reports on the incident. Defence ministry spokesman Belhassen Oueslati said the corporal, whose name was not given, “had family and psychological problems”.

Because of this, he had been “forbidden from carrying arms” and given “non-sensitive duties”.

“He attacked one man with a knife and took his gun before shooting at his comrades who were saluting the flag,” Oueslati said. The incident “caused the deaths of seven soldiers and also of the shooter.

Ten soldiers were wounded, and one is in a serious condition,” he added.

Monday’s shooting was at the Bouchoucha barracks in Tunis, not far from parliament and the Bardo National Museum where jihadist gunmen killed 21 foreign tourists and a policeman in March. It triggered a security alert across the Bardo district, a correspondents reported.

Published in Dawn, May 26th, 2015

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