Twenty-two people, including 20 foreign tourists, have been killed in a gun attack on the Bardo museum in the Tunisian capital.
Italian,
Spanish, Polish and German citizens were among those killed, as well as
a Tunisian and a police officer, PM Habib Essid said.
Colombia's president later confirmed two Colombian deaths.
Security forces killed two gunmen and were searching the surrounding area for accomplices, Mr Essid said.
At
the time of the attack, deputies in the neighbouring parliamentary
building were discussing anti-terrorism legislation. Parliament was
evacuated following the attack.
At least 22 tourists and two Tunisians were also injured, Mr Essid said. Other reports suggest up to 50 could have been hurt.
Italian, Polish, South African, French and Japanese tourists were among the injured, Mosaique FM radio reported.
Analysis: BBC Security Correspondent Frank Gardner
Sadly, this attack did not come out of the blue.
While Tunisia has been spared the catastrophic levels of violence
that have plagued other Arab Spring countries like Syria, Yemen and
Libya, the country has still suffered from occasional but deadly attacks
carried out by Islamist extremists.
In 2013, 22 people were
killed. This included a suicide bomber who attacked a beach resort in
Sousse. Last year 45 people were killed and already this year the death
toll has reached 23, with Wednesday's museum raid following an attack on
a mountain checkpoint in February that killed 4 police officers.
In
all cases the perpetrators are believed to be jihadists. Tunisian
fighters make up a disproportionately high number of foreign recruits to
Islamic State (IS) in Syria. More than 3,000 have joined, earning
themselves a reputation for ferocity both on and off the battlefield.
At the scene: BBC's Naveena Kottoor in Tunis
The
last group of foreign tourists left the Bardo museum by bus under the
watch of the Tunisian security forces and hundreds of bystanders.
Traffic is flowing again, but bystanders are still here.
One man
told me he had come out of sadness and shock. The attack struck at both
the political and economic heart of Tunisia. The museum is to many
Tunisians what the Louvre is to Paris - a major tourist destination.
This kind of attack on civilians is new here - the last time
something similar happened was in 2002. As an act of defiance and
national unity, Tunisian politicians are returning to parliament this
evening. But many Tunisians had hoped that 2015 would bring a more
prosperous and stable future. Tunisia's militant Islamists: How big a threat?
Mr Essid said: "It is a critical moment in our history, and a defining moment for our future.
"We
have not established the identity of the two terrorists... Reports are
not final, these two terrorists could have been assisted by two or three
other operatives."
Security operations were "still under way", he added.
Parliament will hold an extraordinary session on Wednesday evening. Lawmaker Sayida Ounissi said the session would be held inside the Bardo museum.
Local television footage showed tourists fleeing to safety, escorted by security forces.
A
museum employee told Reuters the two attackers "opened fire on the
tourists as they were getting off the buses before fleeing into the
museum".
'Tanks rolling in'
Eyewitness
Yasmine Ryan told the BBC she saw "helicopters flying overhead" and
"tanks rolling in" as the security situation unfolded.
The attack
is a huge blow for Tunisia's tourism industry and its government, which
only emerged at the end of a long political transition several months
ago, the BBC's Arab affairs editor Sebastian Usher says.
Islamist
militants have tried to derail the democratic transition, which,
although fragile, remains the most positive result of the Arab Spring in
the Middle East, our correspondent adds.
The Bardo National Museum
Tunisia's largest museum, built in a 15th Century palace
Contains 8,000 works, including one of the world's largest collections of Roman mosaics
Some items in the collection are more than 40,000 years old
A new wing was added in 2009, doubling its size
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini offered her condolences (in French) to the victims' families, and said the EU would "fully support Tunisia in the fight against terrorism".
US
Secretary of State John Kerry said the US "stands with the Tunisian
people at this difficult time" and would continue to support the
government's "efforts to advance a secure, prosperous, and democratic
Tunisia".
Tourism is a key sector of Tunisia's economy, with large numbers of Europeans visiting the country's resorts.
In
2002, 19 people, including 11 German tourists, were killed in a bomb
blast at a synagogue in the resort of Djerba. Al-Qaeda said it had
carried out that attack.
Concerns about security in Tunisia have increased in recent months as neighbouring Libya has become increasingly unstable.
A
large number of Tunisians have also left to fight in Syria and Iraq,
triggering worries that returning militants could carry out attacks at
home.
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