Magharebia (Washington DC)

Tunisia: Nation to Protect Sufi Shrines

27 January 2013

Tunisia's government on Saturday (January 26th) announced an emergency strategy to protect Sufi Muslim mausoleums, TAP reported. According to Culture Minister Mehdi Mabrouk, the strategy will be implemented by the "culture, interior and religious affairs ministries to cope with repeated attacks against mausoleums".

Sufi union chief Mohamed El Heni noted that no concrete action was announced in the eight months in which nearly 40 shrines have been destroyed.

"We welcome this initiative but repeat that the government had responded too late. We hope that (the measures) will be implemented as quickly as possible and that this is not purely an (empty) announcement," he told AFP.

Sufi shrines in Akouda, Gabes, Douz and Matmata were torched last week.

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