Mother of Tunisian beach gunman says he refused to kill a mouse because he 'couldn't kill anything'

The mother of the gunman who killed 38 people in the Tunisia beach terror attack said her son once refused to kill a mouse because he "couldn't kill anything".

Radhia Manai, 49, said she believed Seifeddine Rezgui, who was killed by security forces after the rampage in the Sousse tourist resort, had been "brainwashed" into carrying out the attack.

Rezgui opened fire on holidaymakers sunbathing on the beach on Friday June 26, shooting 38 people dead.

The bodies of all 30 Britons killed in the attack have been repatriated and inquests into their deaths are continuing to open today.

His mother told the (£)Sunday Times: "When they told me my son had killed all these people I said no, it's impossible. I couldn't believe, I can't believe it.

"Once there was a mouse in the house and I asked Seifeddine to kill it and he refused saying, 'I can't kill anything'.

Mrs Manai said she hoped the British authorities "get to the bottom of this" as she described the 23-year-old student as a music and football fan.

According to the paper, his parents first learned of the massacre when police arrived to question them at their home in Gaafour, more than 100 miles from Sousse.

Tunisian authorities have questioned several suspected associates of Rezgui, who had links to the terror group Islamic State (IS).

They have said he acted alone during the rampage but had accomplices who supported him beforehand, providing him with weapons and logistical support.

Tunisian president Beji Caid Essebsi said an investigation was under way into security failures and armed tourist police would be on beaches.

A state of emergency has been declared in the north African country in the wake of the attack.