Migrant from Guinea killed in Tunisia camp clash after football match

Deadly violence erupts between sub-Saharan migrant groups in northern Tunisia following Champions League tensions.

Migrants from sub-Saharan Africa wait outside the International Organization for Migration (IOM) headquarters in Tunis on April 10, 2025. Photo by Fethi Belaid/AFP

By Anna Fadiah and Hayu Andini

A migrant from Guinea killed in Tunisia camp clash has ignited new concerns over escalating violence in makeshift settlements in the North African country. The deadly incident occurred following a football-related dispute between sub-Saharan African migrant groups living in the olive groves near the coastal town of El Amra, about 30 kilometers from the city of Sfax.

Tarak Mahdi, a Tunisian parliamentarian representing Sfax, told AFP that the violence broke out on Tuesday night between two groups—one from Guinea and the other from Ivory Coast. “Dozens were wounded,” Mahdi said, describing the clashes as brutal and chaotic. “They used machetes and knives,” he added, emphasizing the growing volatility within these unregulated camps.

According to National Guard spokesman Houcem Eddine Jebabli, the migrant from Guinea killed in Tunisia camp clash was struck in the head with a stone during the confrontation. Six individuals have been arrested in connection with the violence.

The conflict reportedly started after a heated argument over a Champions League football match—a seemingly trivial trigger for a tragedy that exposes much deeper tensions among the thousands of sub-Saharan migrants living in precarious conditions in Tunisia.

A fatal outcome from deep-rooted tension

The makeshift camps around El Amra have grown in both size and instability, housing thousands of migrants who live in squalid conditions amid olive groves. Many of these individuals are either hoping to cross the Mediterranean to reach Europe or are stuck in transit with no legal status and little access to aid.

Tensions have been simmering for months. Clashes over food, space, and cultural differences have been common, but the killing of a migrant from Guinea in this latest Tunisia camp clash marks a troubling escalation. The involvement of weapons—particularly knives and machetes—points to increasing desperation and lawlessness in these settlements.

While the trigger was a football match, local officials say the real causes lie in deteriorating conditions and increasing marginalization. “This was waiting to happen,” said Mahdi. “When you pack thousands of people into isolated areas without services, supervision, or basic rights, these kinds of explosions are inevitable.”

Security crackdown and growing hostility

Just last week, Tunisian security forces launched a major operation to dismantle several of the migrant encampments in the El Amra area. Authorities said the sweep was meant to restore public order, but rights groups criticized the move as a harsh crackdown that left many without shelter or protection.

The camps have become a flashpoint for Tunisia’s evolving migration crisis. The government, led by President Kais Saied, has adopted increasingly hardline rhetoric against sub-Saharan migrants. In early 2023, Saied declared that “hordes of sub-Saharan migrants” were a demographic threat, accusing them of trying to “change Tunisia’s Arab identity.”

Such statements have fueled public resentment and, in many cases, emboldened vigilante violence and institutional neglect. Residents of towns near the camps, like El Amra and Sfax, have grown hostile, claiming that crime and public disorder have increased due to the migrant influx.

These allegations, whether grounded or not, have placed pressure on the government to act—resulting in forced evictions, security raids, and sweeping arrests. But critics argue that without providing a long-term strategy for managing the migrant population, these crackdowns only worsen the crisis.

Migrants stuck in limbo

The people living in these camps are not just statistics. They are individuals fleeing economic hardship, war, or political instability in countries like Guinea, Ivory Coast, Mali, and Sudan. Many arrived in Tunisia after harrowing journeys through the Sahara and Libya, only to find themselves stranded, often subject to abuse and exploitation.

Now, with Tunisia increasingly reluctant to host them and European borders tightening, these migrants find themselves in limbo—stateless, homeless, and with very little hope.

The migrant from Guinea killed in the Tunisia camp clash represents not just an isolated victim, but a symbol of how deeply broken the current system is. While international organizations like the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) have called for greater protections, on-the-ground efforts remain limited.

Many migrants don’t even seek help from aid groups, fearing arrest or deportation. Language barriers, misinformation, and distrust in authorities only make things worse.

Calls for urgent action

Human rights advocates are now urging the Tunisian government and international bodies to take immediate steps to prevent further bloodshed. “What happened in El Amra must be a wake-up call,” said a spokesperson for a local NGO that supports migrants. “We need shelter, we need dialogue between communities, and we need to stop treating people like problems to be removed.”

European nations, especially those like Italy and Malta that receive migrants crossing the Mediterranean, are also facing renewed pressure to engage more proactively with Tunisia—not only to control departures but to help improve conditions for migrants in the country.

The EU-Tunisia migration agreement, signed in 2023, promised increased funding for border control, but critics say little of that money has reached humanitarian programs.

As long as migrants continue to be treated as disposable, the cycle of violence and despair will persist.

A dangerous path forward

The migrant from Guinea killed in Tunisia camp clash may be just one among many more if solutions aren’t found soon. The camps around El Amra remain tense. After the clash, security forces increased their presence, but fear lingers.

Migrants from both Guinea and Ivory Coast now live in heightened anxiety, not only from possible police raids but also from each other. “We’re scared all the time now,” said one Ivorian migrant, speaking anonymously. “We came here to find a better life. Now we don’t know what tomorrow will bring.”

Tunisia, caught between Europe’s border pressures and its own internal crises, must now decide whether to continue its punitive approach or chart a more humane and strategic course.

For now, though, the death in El Amra stands as a stark reminder that even a football match can become deadly in an environment where despair and instability rule.