Tunisia: Ras Jedir border crossing shut to passenger and goods traffic

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Tunisia - The Ras Jedir border crossing has been entirely shut to the passenger and goods traffic, as well as to "exceptional cases" on the instructions of the Libyan authorities, a security source told TAP's correspondent in Medenine.

Tunisians can only return from Libyan territory via the Dhiba-Wazen crossing between the two countries, the source added.

He explained that "people were able to move in both directions on Tuesday morning, but following a decision by the Libyan authorities, the border crossing has been totally shut down indefinitely," adding that it is still possible to cross in both directions through the Dhiba-Wazen crossing.

The decision to shut the border crossing followed reports of gunfire on the Libyan side on Monday night. The Tunisian authorities decided to close the border crossing as a precautionary measure to protect the safety of citizens heading towards Libyan territory.

The Ras Jedir border crossing is located at Ben Guerdane in the governorate of Medenine, in south-eastern Tunisia, some 30 km from the city centre and 180 km from the Libyan capital, Tripoli.

There are two operational border crossings between Tunisia and Libya, the first at Ras Jedir and the second at Dhiba Wazen, in the town of Dhiba in the governorate of Tataouine.