Tunisian army search for suspected terrorists

Tunisian security forces on Wednesday surrounded the Mount Boulaabi area in the eastern Kasserine governorate, after reports of suspected terrorist activity. According to security sources, a resident living near Mount Boulaabi informed authorities of four men approaching his home to ask for food and water. The resident said when he went to fetch the water he noticed three other men standing nearby wearing balaclavas to cover their faces and carrying what appeared to be weapons. The source added that as soon as security forces were informed, special units were sent to seal off the area and search for the group of men. Mount Boulaabi is located 15 km away from the Shaanbi mountains where eight Tunisian soldiers were killed in an ambush by militants on Monday.  Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has denied accusations by the Tunisian government that the terror group was behind the attack on soldiers.  AQIM communication officer Ahmed Abou Abdelilah al-Jijli said his group had not violated al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri's directive against attacking post-revolutionary governments, such as Tunisia and Egypt.