In Djerba, Jewish and Muslim communities grapple with trauma after mass shooting at synagogue

Two days after a deadly mass shooting, Djerba's salt air is still pungent with terror and concerns after five people lost their lives in an attack on the oldest synagogue in Africa.

In the maze of streets of Hara Kbira, the Jewish quarter of Djerba, whispers of disbelief and comfort were exchanged among the community as survivors recount "the miraculous stories" of their escape.

"It could have been carnage if the security forces had not been there. We had a very narrow escape," Adam, a survivor, told The New Arab. Adam is a pseudonym due to safety concerns.

Adam, a Tunisian-French Jewish, came from France with his partner to witness the yearly pilgrimage at Ghriba synagogue on the island, the oldest synagogue in Africa.

He said he missed the attacker's bullets by mere seconds as he turned back looking for his partner and their friends.

On Tuesday, a gunman, wearing his police uniform and a bulletproof vest, launched an attack by killing a fellow officer and heading to the island's port with his gun and ammunition, said officials.

He then went to the Ghriba synagogue site and opened fire outside, sparking a wave of fear on the final day of the annual pilgrimage. He ultimately killed three policemen and two visitors.

In the afternoon, tension rose between members of the Jewish community and law enforcement outside the Sadok-Mokaddem regional hospital, where the bodies of the victims were transferred. 

The bodies of the victims were initially received there, but their relatives then learned "by chance" of their transfer to the capital of Tunis for autopsy. A practice prohibited by the laws of the Torah, they say.

"We are the ones who have been affected so why they are hiding information from us," said one frustrated member of the community.

No official from Djerba Hospital was available to give a comment about these allegations.

On the island, trauma extended beyond survivors to the Muslims who lived together with the Jewish community for decades, bonding over the celebrations and frustration against the state.

"It's really sad what happened. The yearly pilgrimage always brought a good ambience to the island. That was a hateful crime," Khalifa, a café manager, told the TNA.

As the motives behind Tuesday's attack are still under investigation, the Tunisian state is still refraining from describing the mass shooting as "hateful" or "terrorist". Tunisian President Kais Siaed and his Ministry of the Interior are both using the term "cowardly attack" to condemn the synagogue shooting.

President Saied also said the attack aimed to "sow discord, sabotage the tourist season and attack the state".

Coming between Passover and Shavuot, the pilgrimage to Ghriba is at the heart of Jewish tradition in Tunisia, where only about 1,500 members of the faith still live - mainly in Djerba - compared with around 100,000 before independence in 1956.

Pilgrims travel to the site from Europe, the United States and Israel, although their numbers have dropped since the deadly bombing in 2002.

The Ghriba pilgrimage was previously targeted in a 2002 suicide truck bombing that killed 21 people.

Tuesday's rampage came as the tourism industry, vital in a heavily indebted, troubled economy, had finally rebounded from pandemic-era lows and attacks in 2015.

To reassure the national and international public, Tunisian Minister of Tourism, Mohamed Moez Belhassine, strolled Wednesday morning in the alleys of Houmt Souk, to meet the craftsmen. 

However many Djerbians say President Saied and his Prime minister should be the first to arrive on the island after Tuesday's "national calamity."