Tunis: Tunisian security forces killed two suspected militants and recovered weapons during a raid near Tunis against a group planning to attack the capital, the government said on Wednesday.
Security forces are engaged in a crackdown after four major attacks in the last year by militants including on a Tunis museum, a beach resort and a border town near Libya.
The Interior Ministry said security forces killed two suspects in a raid on a house in Mnihla, near the capital, arrested 16 people and captured rifles, grenades, pistols and ammunition.
"The terrorists came from different parts of the country and gathered in the capital, particularly Ettadhamoun, to prepare synchronised attacks," the statement said.
Authorities say more than 4,000 Tunisians have left to fight for militant groups in Iraq and Syria and some have returned to training camps run by IS across the border in neighbouring Libya.
Western partners are helping train Tunisian forces in border protection to help stop militants returning from Libya. Attacks on the Tunis Bardo museum and a Sousse beach resort last year were carried out by gunmen trained in Libyan militant camps.