No Terrorists in 'Star Wars' Site Tataouine, Tunisia Officials Assure

The rumored terrorist threat in Luke Skywalker's home planet of "Tatooine" does not exist, a Tunisian official said in allaying fears that the Tunisian city of Tataouine, where George Lucas filmed "Star Wars," has been taken over by Islamic State militants.

Reports that historical "Star Wars" locations in the Tunisian city of Tataouine are under threat from terrorists and ISIS are "without foundation," Mohammed Sayem of Tozeur's tourism commission said on Thursday.

The city of Tataouine, on the fringes of the Sahara, has become a mecca for "Star Wars" fans after Lucas transformed it to Skywalker's "Tatooine" world in 1976.

Despite the Tunisian reassurance, recent turmoil in the Middle East has sparked fears that tourism in the Tunisian city could dry up, a CNN report said last week.

"The desert and dun-colored cliffs around the town of Tataouine were once the backdrop for the movie 'Star Wars,' much of which was filmed in this neglected corner of Tunisia in 1976," a report from The Wrap said.

"This struggling town on the fringes of the Sahara still draws a few fans of the movie but now finds itself part of a real conflict, as a way-station for jihadists crossing the Libyan border 60 miles to the east," it added.

Tunisian officials are now seeking to dampen security concerns among tourists, pointing out that the main Star Wars sets are on the other side of the country near the more peaceful western city of Tozeur.

Col. Mokhtar Hammami, the head of Tunisia's National Guard, assured that he has 1,500 men patrolling Tataouine to keep its free and safe from terrorists.

"I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt that all is normal – in fact we've seen a big influx of foreign tourists and Tunisians," Hammami said, according to the Guardian.

The heightened concern comes after the deadly terror attack on the Bardo Museum in Tunis last week when two gunmen killed 21 people.