Kenya hostage crisis

Gunmen from the Islamist militant group al-Shabaab invaded the campus of Garissa University College in Garissa, northeastern Kenya, on April 2, killing 148 people and wounding at least 75. 

The gunmen took more than 500 students hostage, then released Muslim students but kept Christian ones. Authorities reported that the four gunmen involved in the attack were killed, two of them by police before the hostages were taken. Most of the hostages were saved.

Kenya has been targeted by al-Shabaab in the past for its military involvement in Somalia, al-Shabaab’s base of operations.

Attack at Tunis museum

In Tunis, Tunisia, gunmen stormed the National Bardo Museum on March 19, killing 24 people in the bus parking lot and inside. Among the dead were 21 tourists, including citizens of Australia, Colombia, Italy, Japan, Spain and the United Kingdom, a number of whom were on cruise ship shore excursions. The self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility for the attack.

Tunisian authorities killed nine armed militants on March 28, including the man suspected of leading the attack. Dozens of other suspects have been arrested. 

Though Tunisia has successfully transitioned to having a stable, democratic government since the Arab Spring uprising in 2011, a large number of its citizens have joined IS. More than 1,500 Tunisians are believed to be training with IS allies in neighboring Libya.

In response to the attack, some cruise lines, including MSC Cruises and Costa Cruises, canceled stops in Tunisia until further notice. 

Considered the Louvre of North Africa and situated next to the Parliament building, the Bardo reopened to the public on March 30.