Tunisia: The former commander of the Special Forces General Gharbi heads the National Guard

General Houcine Gharbi has been appointed director general of the Tunisian National Guard in place of Fadhel Guezguez, who has been given a new job.

 

This was announced yesterday evening by the Ministry of the Interior of Tunisia. Gharbi has been the head of the National Guard Special Forces since 2012.

 

A specialist in counter-terrorism, Gharbi has conducted extensive security operations, including one carried out in 2015 in Sidi Yaiche, Gafsa governorate, in 2015, which resulted in the elimination of Algerian jihadist Lokman Abou Sakhr, and eight other accomplices.

 

The National Guard of Tunisia is distinguished from the Armed Forces by its membership of the Ministry of the Interior.

 

Its scope of intervention extends to the whole Tunisian territory: ports and airports, stations, cities and villages, public buildings and commercial activities, wherever security is threatened, where an attack is committed or where an attack is likely to occur.

 

The National Guard is also responsible for protecting and controlling land and sea borders.

 

The change at the top of the Tunisian military took place after the attack on the Ghirba synagogue on May 10 by an agent of the National Guard, identified as Wissam Khazri.

 

In this regard, it is worth noting that the Tunisian Coast Guard, responsible for the recovery and rescue operations of illegal migrants at sea, operates under the National Guard.