Family of Tunisian soldier outraged after they discover the wrong body in coffin

Relatives of a Tunisian soldier who was among 14 soldiers killed this week by suspected jihadists were shocked to find the wrong body inside his coffin.

The defence ministry admitted that authorities had delivered the wrong body to the Saidani family who had gathered to mourn him in their home town of Metlaoui in central Tunisia yesterday.

"My brother had a birthmark on his right cheek but the body that was handed over to us did not," the soldier's brother Mahmoud said after the casket was opened at the family home.

A defence ministry spokesman acknowledged the mistake.

"It is true. Somewhere a mistake has been made," Rashid Bouhoula told AFP.

Furious relatives shouted at several officials, including the local governor, who had come to the Saidani home to pay their respects, forcing them to leave, an AFP correspondent reported.