Middle East
Tunisia passes anti-terror laws after deadly attacks
The Tunisian parliament has adopted a new "anti-terror" law aimed at beefing up authorities' powers following recent deadly attacks claimed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group. The new laws impose the death penalty as a possible sentence for a range of "terror" offences and will allow authorities to detain terror suspects for up to 15 days without access to a lawyer.
Tunisia declares state of emergency after beach attack
Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi declared a state of emergency on Saturday to hand his government more authority following an attack on a beach hotel, where 38 foreign tourists, mostly British, were killed. Tunisia's emergency law temporarily gives the government more executive flexibility, hands the army and police more authority and restricts certain rights such as the right to public assembly.
Nine arrested over deadly Tunisia museum attack
Tunisian authorities have arrested nine people allegedly linked to Wednesday's attack apparently targeting tourists at a museum in Tunis that killed at least 21 people and injured 47 others. "Security forces were able to arrest four people directly linked to the [terrorist] operation and five suspected of having ties to the cell," the presidency said in a statement on Thursday.
Tunisians in shock after gunmen target tourists in capital
Tunisia, the small north African country which lit the first spark of the Arab spring when its popular uprising toppled the dictatorship four years ago, has been plunged into shock after gunmen killed at least 20 people, including at least 17 foreign tourists, in the worst terrorist attack in more than a decade.
Tunisia approves coalition government
Voters may turn back the clock on ‘Arab Spring’
In Tunisia, where the Arab Spring began in 2011, voters appeared on Sunday to come full circle, with preliminary election results showing the majority supporting a former official with the toppled regime. Beji Caid Essebsi, of the anti-Islamist Nidaa Tounes Party, is slightly ahead of rival Moncef Marzouki, the incumbent president, who has warned against the return of "one-party era" figures like Essebsi, according to initial results tweeted by the Tunisialive website on Monday.
Tunisian dilemma Deal or no deal
There are concerns that the distribution of power among scores of political parties would further splinter Tunisian society. Small parties may exercise no power in the ruling coalition, were larger partners could use their leverage to wring concessions from them, leading to the emergence of a new authoritarian style of government.
Tunisia counts votes after historic poll
Tunisia has voted in historic elections to choose its first parliament since the overthrow of long-time ruler in 2011 that sparked the 'Arab Spring' protests. Votes were being counted across the country on Sunday as Tunisians cast their ballots in parliamentray elections, four years after the ouster of autocrat Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. Many polling stations reported high turnouts and long lines early in the day, with an estimated 60 percent of the 5.2 million registered voters turning out to vote for the 217-seat parliament.
Islamist Party in Tunisia Appears Set to Rebound
A year ago, Tunisia s main Islamist party, Ennahda, feared for its future. Political assassinations, an emerging insurgency and economic discontent had battered its coalition government. When the Islamist government in Egypt was overthrown and the leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood imprisoned, Ennahda s members worried about a similar fate. Their coalition held on for several more months before negotiating a face-saving exit and eventually ceding power to a caretaker government in January.
New Freedoms in Tunisia Drive Support for ISIS
Nearly four years after the Arab Spring revolt, Tunisia remains its lone success as chaos engulfs much of the region. But that is not its only distinction: Tunisia has sent more foreign fighters than any other country to Iraq and Syria to join the extremist group that calls itself the Islamic State.
Tunisia opposition figures ‘shot by same gun’
Secular opposition politician Mohamed Brahmi was killed with the same gun that was used to kill his coalition party leader Chokri Belaid six months ago, Tunisia's interior minister has said. Lotfi Ben Jeddou told a news conference on Friday that it suggested the involvement of the same hardline Salafist group.
Killing of Opposition Politician Risks Plunging Tunisia Into Chaos
Tunisian prime minister resigns
Tunisia PM to resign if new cabinet rejected
Tunisian Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali has threatened to resign unless his Ennahda party and other parties accept his proposals for an interim government of technocrats. Jebali, who is in dispute with his party over his proposal for a new government, said on Saturday he would present his new cabinet "by the middle of next week by the latest," the official TAP news agency reported.
Tunisia’s Islamists hold rally in capital
Hundreds of supporters of Tunisia's governing Islamist party, Ennahda, are attending a rally in the centre of the capital, Tunis, a day after huge crowds attended a murdered opposition leader's funeral. The demonstrators have gathered outside the National Theatre and are chanting: "We are Muslims, we will not be moved." In the meantime, Tunisian Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali has pledged to form a new non-partisan government of technocrats by the middle of next week, Tunisian media report.
Tear gas fired as Tunisia buries politician
Tens of thousands of mourners have gathered for the funeral of an assassinated Tunisian opposition leader, chanting anti-government slogans, with clashes reported outside the cemetery where he was buried. Police fired teargas at people outside the cemetery where Shokri Belaid was buried on Friday, witnesses said. The authorities had earlier fired shots in the air to disperse youths who were smashing cars in the area. Members of the crowd tried to intervene to stop the clashes, which occurred before the main procession had arrived at the cemetery.
Government supporters attack Tunisia union
Tunisian police have broken up fighting in Tunis when pro-government supporters attacked labour union members they blamed for inciting protests last week against the government. Several hundred pro-government supporters, with knives and sticks, charged a gathering of members of Tunisia's biggest union, UGTT, in the capital on Tuesday and broke windows at its offices with stones, a witness of Reuters news agency said.
Tunisia reaches deal with Siliana protesters
Tunisia's government has reached an agreement with the labour union of the flashpoint town Siliana, where police are battling to maintain order for the fifth straight day. Under the deal, the assistant governor will run the town after ongoing protests calling for Governor Ahmed Ezzine Majjoubi to resign, Al Jazeera's Hashem Ahelbarra reported from Siliana on Saturday.
Clashes continue in flashpoint Tunisia town
Violent clashes have continued in the Tunisian town of Siliana, where a police crackdown on protests has left hundreds of people wounded this week, as political instability in the north African country mounts. Policemen, backed by armoured cars, fired warning shots and tear gas at hundreds of protesters on Friday evening.
Tunisia’s Ben Ali sentenced to life in jail
Tunisia's ex-strongman Zine El Abidine Ben Ali has been sentenced in absentia to life in prison for complicity in the murders of 43 protesters in the 2011 revolution that toppled him, a military judge has said. Hedi Ayari of the Tunis military court said on Thursday that Ben Ali was judged with around 40 of his former officials, including General Ali Seriati, ex-head of presidential security, who was given a 20-year prison term
Curfews in Tunisia after overnight riots
The Tunisian government has imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew in eight areas of the country, including the capital, after rioting blamed on ultra-conservative Salafi Muslims left dozens of police officers injured. The wave of violence on Monday night mostly targeted courts and other state buildings. Police in the capital Tunis fired tear gas to disperse protesters who torched a local courthouse and attacked several police stations.
Salafists clash with police in Jendouba
Hundreds of Salafists have clashed with security forces and attacked a police station in a Tunisian town. The clashes, in Jendouba, were sparked when the ultra-conservative Muslims began protesting against the arrest of four fellow Muslims. The number of those who took part, some armed with clubs and Molotov cocktails, swelled to 500 during the day. After setting fire to the security headquarters, the group attacked bars and stores selling alcohol.
Police use force to break up Tunisia protest
Police in Tunisia have fired tear gas to disperse a rally to commemorate Martyrs Day and protest against the worsening economic situation and lack of employment in the north African nation. Nearly a thousand demonstrators turned out on Monday morning to a protest on Habib Bourguia Avenue in the capital Tunis, defying a government ban on protests
Tunisia Islamists Test Ideas Decades in the Making
If the revolts that swept the Middle East a year ago were the coming of age of youths determined to imagine another future for the Arab world, the aftermath that has brought elections in Egypt and Tunisia and the prospect of decisive Islamist influence in Morocco, Libya and, perhaps, Syria is the moment of another, older generation.
Tunisia Navigates a Democratic Path Tinged With Religion
Portrait one of a revolution
Today, Tunisia celebrates the first anniversary of its January 14 revolution, when the autocrat residing in Carthage had to flee. There are many ways of marking a historical benchmark such as the ousting of a dictator. But what is the significance of January 14? Is it just a question of a national day - or even a Pan-Arab day - when the Arab Spring sprung? Is it about enumerating the anniversaries of a spectacular escape? Or is it an idea and an ideal requiring renewal and stock-taking?
Investigators seek return of Ben Ali wealth
The family of Tunisia's former leader, Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali, had a reputation for leading an excessively extravagant lifestyle that angered many people and helped lead to their downfall. Now, almost a year after the Ben Ali's fled the country, there is not much that remains of their lavish mansions; most of them were looted in the days following the revolution.
The Arab Spring’s success story
Tunisia was the first post-revolution country to hold free and fair elections, and the plurality of seats were won by the Islamist Ennahda Party, which had been banned up until the revolution. The Tunisian constituent assembly has 217 members, and it has a year to decide on a new constitution for the country.
Tunisia issues warrant for Arafat’s widow
Tunisian authorities issued an international arrest warrant for Suha Arafat, widow of late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, as part of a corruption probe into Tunisia's former first family, the justice ministry said. Suha Arafat used to spend much of her time in Tunisia and was for many years close to the wife of former President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, who was forced to flee by the north African country's revolution in January.
In Tunisia, Islamists flourish as democracy is ushered in
Tunisia’s secular women fret erosion of freedoms with rise of Islamism
Al-Nahda claims victory in Tunisia poll
Tunisia An election full of surprises
Tunisia counts votes in historic free election
Tunisian election officials are counting votes after Sunday's election, the first free poll of the Arab Spring. More than 90% of registered voters turned out to cast their ballots, officials say. Tunisians are electing a 217-seat assembly that will draft a constitution and appoint an interim president, who will choose the new government
Tunisians in suicide bid after jobs rejection
Five Tunisians have tried to hang themselves after failing a competition to become teachers in the impoverished western Kasserine region, witnesses and media reports said. The men climbed an improvised scaffold outside a branch of the education ministry and tied rope nooses around their necks, witness Rachid Jabbari told the AFP news agency.
Discontent Continues in ‘Birthplace’ of Tunisia Revolution
The central Tunisian town of Sidi Bouzid is considered the birthplace of the North African country's historic January revolution, which triggered copycat protests across the Arab world. But as Tunisia prepares for its first democratic elections in October, discontent remains high. A July demonstration in Sidi Bouzid turned violent, killing a young boy.
Islamic Force Rises in Tunisia
The fundamentalist Ennahda party seems poised to take advantage of a chaotic situation ahead of general elections in Tunisia. Ennahda and other Islamist parties are taking advantage of the Aug. 2 deadline for registration for elections coinciding with the start of the holy month of Ramadan, when there is better attendance at mosques.
Conservative Muslims clash with secularists in Tunisia
Ben Ali of Tunisia Guilty of Embezzling State Funds
Tunisia imposes overnight capital curfews
Tunisian police clash with protesters
Tunisia’s former President Ben Ali faces 18 charges
Tunisian authorities say they want to try former President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali on 18 different charges, including voluntary manslaughter and drug-trafficking. Justice Minister Lazhar Karoui Chebbi said the charges were among 44 to be made against Mr Ben Ali, his family and some former ministers.
In Tunisia, first steps toward democracy
In this low-slung colonial city of whitewashed buildings, cars career down lanes reserved for trolleys and black-market street vendors have clogged the sidewalks, sometimes erupting into turf battles that make pedestrians scramble for cover. Tunisian flags flutter on balconies, and graffiti on the main avenue read: "Thank you, Facebook."
Tunisia dissolves Ben Ali party
Tunisia PM announces resignation
Lacking Faith in Future, Tunisians Take to the Boats
Tunisia seeks Ben Ali extradition from Saudi Arabia
Tunisia Police disperse Islamist rally against brothel
Tunsia replaces regional governors
Tunisia has replaced all 24 regional governors as part of the efforts to dismantle the legacy of the ousted president, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, according to official sources. The country's state news agency reported on Thursday that the interior ministry replaced several senior security officials this week, a first step to overhauling the network of police, security forces and spies built up by Ben Ali during 23 years of police rule.
Tunisia’s chance to turn dictatorship into democracy is a hard-to-stop, high-risk venture
An Interview with Rached Ghannouchi (Abedin)
Yesterday Rached Ghannouchi, the head of the al-Nahda Party, returned to Tunisia after more than 20 years in exile. Al-Nahda, banned by the Ben Ali regime, is generally labelled an "Islamist" party, and there has been a lot of chatter about its intentions and policies. Ghannouchi has been giving a series of interviews to try and assuage any concerns and to set out the possibilities for the party.
Arab Bloggers Cheer on Tunisia’s Revolution
Qaddafi Blames WikiLeaks for Tunisia Unrest
Tunisia Unity Government Feels Force of Protests
Tunisia’s civil unrest
Tunisia’s Democratic Revolution
Whether the overthrow of the corrupt and autocratic Ben Ali regime in Tunisia in a mass civil insurrection will lead to a stable, just and democratic order remains to be seen, but the dramatic events in that North African country underscore a critical point: Democracy in the Arab world will not come from foreign military intervention or sanctimonious lecturing from Western capitals, but from Arab peoples themselves.
Tunisia’s intifada, a revolt or a revolution? What is going on these days?
Tunisian leader returns from exile
Rachid Ghannouchi, the leader of a formerly banned party, has returned to Tunisia after 21 years in exile. More than 1,000 people gathered at the main international airport to welcome the leader of al-Nahda as he returned from the UK on Sunday, after the interim government pledged to allow his party and other movements banned under the rule of now ousted President Zine al-Abdine Ben Ali.
Ben Ali allies dropped from cabinet
Mr. Abdel Bari Atwan, Are Those Protesting Tyranny in Tunisia, Egypt and Yemen Agents of the West?
In the summer of 2009 when thousands of Iranians were protesting the elections and were shouting aginst tyranny and dictatorship of Mr. Ahmadinejad and his benefactor, Mr. Khamenei. The Editor of Al-Quds Al-Arabi Mr. Abdel Bari Atwan, said the protesters are being manipulated by the West to go out in the streets and protest. Perhaps [...]
Before and after Ben Ali
In Ben Ali's time, any criticism of the government, however mild it might be, was not allowed. People risked losing their jobs and compromising their future if they did not show their loyalty to the president. It was no secret that bloggers in Tunisia underwent censorship and faced real dangers of imprisonment, torture and death [...]
A Call for Calm in Tunis
After days of antigovernment protests, dozens of Tunisians marched in the capital on Tuesday to demonstrate their patience with the interim government that replaced the ousted dictator Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, pleading with their fellow citizens to give the temporary leadership time to hold elections.
Can Tunisia win against both autocrats and theocrats
The recent grassroots uprising against the government in Tunisia, unprecedented in recent Arab history, has been the source of an enormous outpouring of both hope and fear throughout the region. While almost all Arab political leaders have life terms, ex-President Zein El-Abedine Ben Ali was basically chased out of his country and his office by a largely unorganized, spontaneous and diverse outpouring of outrage from a very wide segment of the population.
One Small Revolution
THE West stands captivated by Tunisia, where a month of peaceful protests by secular working- and middle-class Arabs has toppled a dictator, raising hopes that this North African country of 10 million will set off democracy movements throughout a region of calcified dictatorships. But before we envision a new Middle East remade in the manner of Europe 1989, it is worth cataloguing the pivotal ways in which Tunisia is unique.
The Tunisian revolution: Initial reflections
At the moment it is abundantly easy to sense everywhere in the Arab World elation at what appears to be one of greatest events in modern Arab history. A genuine popular revolution, spontaneous and apparently leaderless, yet sustained and remarkably determined, overthrew a system that by all accounts had been the most entrenched and secure in the whole region.
Tunisia government under pressure
Tunisia’s revolution in the Arab press – What the Arab papers say
THE Arab press has been awash with responses to the protests in Tunisia deposing Zine el-Abedine Ben Ali. Their views range from from elation at the fall of Tunisia's president, to concern over how the power vacuum will be filled and speculation about which corrupt Arab leader could be next to fall.
Gun Battles in Tunisia Chaos Threatens the Revolution
Tunisia revolt Will Tunisia revolt inspire others in Middle East
Tunisia’s Military Throws Support Behind New Leaders
New battle lines appeared to take shape in traumatized Tunisia on Sunday as the military backed the nascent interim government in what state media portrayed as a fight against security forces loyal to ousted President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, blaming them for the violence and rioting that has engulfed the country since protests forced him from power 48 hours earlier.
Tunisia and reshaping the Arab world
Here in Palestine, we face a relentless assault not only on us and our lands but on truth, on decency, on nature, on dignity, and, dare I say, on God. Israeli authorities are working overtime to transform the Holy City of Jerusalem from a multi-ethnic and multi-religious city to a distorted vision of what Zionists [...]
In Tunisia, Cyberwar Precedes Revolution
Tunisia “the Facebook revolution”
The Tunisian revolution started with some of the demonstrations that were organized through Facebook, spread out on Twitter, etc and ended in a revolution. After several weeks of violent rioting, it is relatively quiet in the Tunisian capital of Tunis in the evening. President Zine al-Abidin Ben Ali (74) have fled the country and [...]
Stay updated with the revolution in Tunisia as it continues to unfold
By now everyone is likely following the most significant news to hit the MENA region in a very long time. There are hundreds of sources covering the Tunisian revolution - with videos/images scattered all over YouTube, Facebook, Flickr, etc. It's very difficult to know where to go to get everything in one place so [...]
Tunisia: A New Age?
After the self-immolation of Mohammad Bouazizi in the city of Sidibouzid on December 17th shortly after the police's attempt to confiscate his vegetable cart for not having a permit to sell, Tunisia has seen massive protests whose voices echoed all across the Middle East, even though at first were ignored by the international community, who [...]