Manhunt! Third attacker in Tunisian museum attack on the loose. AP.

A screencap from surveillance video showing all three attackers. AP/Tunisian Government

This is the surveillance footage. Some graphic content. 

The president of Tunisia announced that there was a third attacker in last weeks deadly terror attack on the Bardo Museum and that the attacker is on the run. AP. The attack, which killed 21 people, ended with two of the attackers dead. A third man has shown up in surveillance footage released by the government (and posted above). In the footage two men carrying rifles walk up to a third with a backpack and briefly greet each other before heading on. Tunisia's president, Beji Caid Essebi said that the country was now at war with the attackers and that they have no connection to Islam. ISIS had previously taken credit for the attack but no media has been able to verify those claims. 

My Comment:

Very strange that this man was able to escape. One wonders if he was involved at all. Looking at the footage though it seems unlikely that he wasn't. For a guy suddenly seeing two heavily armed men he seemed far to calm. To me the third mans body language didn't say "there are two guys with rifles here". It said "oh it's YOU guys. Good luck, time for me to get out of here".  Maybe this really was the calmest guy in Tunisia and the two gunmen just arbitrarily decided to let him go. That seems very unlikely though. Still if the the Tunisian government is wrong I would hate to be that guy right now...

So if this third person is legit, what was his role in the attack? I kind of doubt he was a gunmen since he didn't have any weapons on him at the time, though I guess it is possible. My guess is he was a handler in charge of the operation, or at least the one in command of the other two. He also could have been an inside man, who helped the gunmen get into restricted areas. I have no idea if that would even be necessary for a museum though. It's even possible that he was a suicide bomber who chickened out. Whatever he was we probably won't know until they catch him or the cell he belongs to collapses. 

As for the attack itself, CNN was saying that they are having trouble identifying who is dead. Not surprising that most of the victims were foreign tourists. That's a logistical nightmare and it isn't surprising at all that they can't figure out who is who. Although this attack took place in Tunisia, it is quite clearly an international attack. The tourists were targeted specifically because they were from other countries. 

Also, the fact that this attack happened on the steps of the Tunisian government is a very strong statement. To me ISIS, or whoever is behind the attack, is saying that they could have attacked the government but chose not too. They are saying that they have the power to strike but choose to strike elsewhere because their real targets are the west. It is also saying that the Tunisian government is powerless to stop them. After all, if they can't stop a major terror attack right on their doorstep, how can they prevent it anywhere else? That is not a thought that is going to comfort anyone living in Tunisia. Of course, I could be reading the situation wrong. Maybe Tunisia is like Canada was before their own brush with Islamic terrorism? That is to say, perhaps security was much lighter then it would be in a place like the United States. 

I've talked before about how effective the Charlie Hebdo style attack is. I won't rehash much of it here, but consider this. We are still talking about this attack days after it occurred. That is a huge propaganda victory for ISIS or whoever did this attack. Sure, that happens when you bomb a building as well, but the chances of failure are much higher. Once again, these kinds of high-impact, low-risk, low-cost attacks are proving very attractive for terrorist organizations. Expect more of the same in the future.