ISIS Takes Tatooine: Tourists Warned To Stay Away From Star Wars Film Locations In Tunisia

The headline reads like something out of the new Star Wars film, but the big question everyone must be thinking is, who exactly is the Empire and who are the Rebellion? It's a wise man who has an answer to that.

It's common knowledge amongst Star Wars fans and pretty much everyone else too that Luke Skywalker's birthplace and home, the desert planet Tatooine, was shot on location in Tunisia. It was filmed in the deserts and places surrounding the town of Tataouine, where it gets its name.

The place has long been a tourist hotspot with a lot of the locations and sets used in the film still there for people to walk around and see. But now, nearly a week after the terrible attack on tourists at the Bardo National Museum, the UK government is advising against "all but essential travel" to the area, saying that Tunisia has a "high threat from terrorism, including kidnapping."

CNN says that Tataouine is a "way-station for jihadists crossing the Libyan border 60 miles to the east." while reporting that "two arms caches have also been found in the region this month, one of which included rocket-propelled grenade launchers and more than 20,000 rounds of ammunition."

So it looks like the area has become a transit point for ISIS and its supporters. If you're thinking of visiting the region, make sure you check your country's travel advisories for details before doing so.

And if you wanted it or not, here is the obligatory news report