article_snippet: Tunisia has long been a hot-bed of would be jihadist sympathetic to the ISIS cause, with an estimated 3,000 people fighting in Syria – the highest number of any country.
article_snippet: Tunisia has always been a breeding ground for terrorists, with extremists advantage of bored and jobless young men looking for an escape route.
article_snippet: But the recent surge in numbers seems to be down to the hard-line groups which have taken advantage of the relaxing laws following the Jasmine Revolution in 2011 - including Islamist militant group Ansar al Sharia, which the United States brands as a terrorist organisation and blames for a 2012 attack on the U.S. embassy in Tunis.
article_snippet: the hard-line groups which have taken advantage of the relaxing laws following the Jasmine Revolution in 2011 - including Islamist militant group Ansar al Sharia, which the United States brands as a terrorist organisation and blames for a 2012 attack on the U.S. embassy in Tunis have taken advantage of the declining economy, capitalising on the disappointment felt by those who expected a change after the Arab Spring, according to Imen Triki, a lawyer who represents returning jihadists.
article_snippet: Social media is also blamed, with pictures of ISIS fighters getting thousands of likes and recruiters using Facebook to find any potential fighters, much like is seen in the UK.
article_snippet: But with the rise of ISIS in Libya, to the east, and al-Qaeda affiliated groups in Algeria, to the west, it is now easy to join a ‘jihad’, and get arms into Tunisia itself.
article_snippet: Tunisia itself is surrounded by jihadist groups in the mountains who coordinate with the terrorists in Libya ...
article_snippet: Libya is the main source of arms for jihadists in Tunisia itself,’ said Prime Minister Mehdi Jomaa.