At the time of the shootings, official travel advice from the UK Foreign Office did not specifically advise holidaymakers against going to Tunisia.<\/p>\n
Instead the advice available on its website stated “further attacks are possible”, following the killing of 24 people at the Bardo National Museum in Tunis on 19 March 2015.<\/p>\n
Jane Marriott, the Foreign Office’s Middle East and North Africa director, told the inquest that the level of the terror alert relating to Tunisia had not been raised, with officials deciding “we should not discourage tourism to Tunisia”.<\/p>\n
The government did persuade Tunisian authorities to step up security in tourist areas, she said.<\/p>\n
Ms Marriott said the UK was powerless to force Tunisia to improve its security, but “what we can and we do say is that we want to see an improvement in your security.”<\/p>\n Over the next seven weeks, the court will examine whether the UK government and travel firms failed in their responsibility to protect British tourists.<\/p>\n The coroner, Judge Nicholas Loraine-Smith, will look at travel advice issued for Tunisia by the Foreign Office, as well as the security put in place at the hotel by tour operator Thomson.<\/p>\n The inquest was shown CCTV footage of Rezgui as he was dropped off in a white van.<\/p>\n Photos of the Imperial Marhaba Hotel, including its beach where the attacks started, were also shown as evidence.<\/p>\n Live TV feeds of the proceedings were also shown in courts in Cardiff and Stirling for survivors and relatives to watch.<\/p>\n ‘Mastermind’ on the run<\/strong><\/p>\n The government has applied for some details to be kept private over national security concerns.<\/p>\n The Islamic State militant group said it was behind the attack by the Tunisian student.<\/p>\n The BBC’s Panorama programme this month reported that the suspected “mastermind” behind the shootings is believed to be on the run in Libya.<\/p>\n Chamseddine al-Sandi recruited and directed Rezgui, according to documents obtained by Panorama.<\/p>\n And confessions from suspects arrested by Tunisian police state that al-Sandi ran a militant cell responsible for both shootings – the attacks at Sousse and at the Bardo National Museum.<\/p>\n –<\/p>\n Source: BBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Tunisian security forces “wasted time” before responding to a massacre on a beach resort as 30 British tourists were shot dead, a UK coroner has heard. In total, 38 people died in the hour-long gun attack near Sousse in June 2015. But local units deliberately “slowed down” as Islamist gunman Seifeddine Rezguiopened fire, said the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[107],"tags":[3,3129],"yoast_head":"\n![\"Relatives](\"http:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/624\/cpsprodpb\/C8D1\/production\/_93590415_f2b61561-b074-4905-b54f-a1f04e2c7456.jpg\")