Polish Priest Brutally Murdered in Tunisia

TUNIS, Tunisia (AP/The Blaze) — Tunisia’s official TAP news agency says a Catholic priest from Poland has been killed and his body had multiple stab wounds and his throat was slit.

Archbishop Marek Marius Rybinski, 34, worked at the School of Our Lady, a religious school in the Tunis suburb of Manouba. His mangled body was found Friday in the school parking lot.

Tunisia has been the scene of economic, social and political unrest for months and a mass uprising toppled Tunisia’s autocratic leader Zine el Abidine ben Ali a month ago. Since then, the transitional government has struggled to re-establish order and religious militancy has been on the rise.

It was not clear if the priest’s killing was at the hands of religious extremists. In a statement, the Interior Ministry said the killing appeared to be the work of a “group of extremist terrorist fascists,” judging by the way it was carried out.

“The Ministry of the Interior condemns this act and regrets the death. Based on results of the preliminary investigation, including the method of assassination, it believes a group of terrorist fascists with extremist tendencies was behind this crime,” it said.

The statement also denounced extremists’ “exploitation … of the current exceptional circumstances to make trouble.”

Islamists torched brothels in the capital earlier Friday, demanding their closure. The military deployed helicopters to disperse angry crowds.