Nationwide Silence For Tunisia Attack Victims

A minute of silence will be held nationwide on Friday to remember the victims of the Tunisia terror attack, the PM has said.

The act of remembrance will take place at noon, one week on from the beach massacre that killed dozens of Britons, David Cameron told the House of Commons.

Mr Cameron said: "We will not give up our way of life or cower in the face of terrorism."

Gunman Seifeddine Rezgui opened fire on sunbathing tourists on a beach in the resort of Sousse with a Kalashnikov he had hidden in an umbrella, before moving on to a hotel where he shot more holidaymakers.

His rampage ended around 30 minutes later when the aviation student was shot dead in the street by security forces, who found a bomb on his body.

Mr Cameron said the victims of Rezgui's attack were "innocent" people who had saved up for time away with family and friends, who "suddenly became the victims of the most brutal terrorist attack against the British people for many years".

He described the "existential threat" posed by Islamic State, which has claimed responsibility for the attack, as the "struggle of our generation".

Mr Cameron told MPs a memorial to the victims of the attack would be announced in due course.

For now, the PM said the Government's priority was bringing back those Britons who have been injured and those who have died - which Sky sources say could be as many as 30 .

The Government has so far confirmed 18 of the 38 victims were from the UK. Another three were from Ireland.

The PM said the Government is working "as fast as we can" to get information to families still waiting for news of missing loved ones.

Families have previously been warned identifying those killed will take time because few of the victims were carrying IDs.

Mr Cameron's spokeswoman said that in two cases where authorities "feared the worst", individuals who were thought to have been killed were this morning tracked down alive and well back home.

UK authorities are working with relatives of those killed to offer help with the repatriation of bodies, and some are expected to be flown back this week.

An RAF plane is being sent to evacuate the injured from Tunisia, and Downing Street has pledged to get them back within 24 hours.

Four people requiring treatment are being flown back on board an RAF C17 plane with "medevac" teams experienced at bringing injured service personnel back from operations abroad.

The British Red Cross has sent four specialist psycho-social volunteers to support holidaymakers caught up in the attack and has opened a supportline for people in the UK on 0844 4631 345.

Home Secretary Theresa May has visited the scene of the attack, where she joined others to pay her respects to the dead and later met with government officials.

She condemned the "despicable acts of cruelty" and added: "We are very clear that the terrorists will not win."

Seven suspected associates of Rezgui have been arrested in at least three different cities and are being questioned in the capital, Tunis.

The Tunisian authorities say he acted alone during the attack, but had accomplices who supported him beforehand, providing him with weapons and logistical support.

Scotland Yard has said more than 600 officers are involved in the investigation, its largest counter-terrorism operation since the 7/7 bombings in 2005.

Meanwhile, it has been revealed that around half of the 20,000 British tourists who were in Tunisia at the time of the attack have returned to the UK , after airlines and travel companies put on extra flights to get worried holidaymakers home.

Mr Cameron said Britons were not being advised to stay away from Tunisia's coastal resorts despite the massacre, although this is under "close review".

"The Foreign Office has updated their travel advice, which continues to make clear the high threat from terrorism in the country, just as it did before Friday's events," the PM said.

"But they are not moving to a position of advising against all but essential travel to this part of Tunisia."

A major exercise will take place in London to ensure the UK is ready to deal with terrorism, Mr Cameron also revealed.

Downing Street said the training exercise had been planned in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo attack in January, to "test the level of preparedness in the UK" to deal with a similar attack.