Tunisians began voting Sunday to select a so-called Constituent Assembly, tasked to draw up a new constitution and chart a political roadmap for the North African country. It will be the first democratic election since Tunisia’s independence in 1956. More than 100 parties are running for a place in the 217-seat assembly, a sharp contrast […]
Voters in Tunisia Head to Polls
Posted October 22nd, 2011 at 6:45 pm (UTC-5)
Tunisian voters head to the polls Sunday to select a so-called Constituent Assembly, tasked to draw up a new constitution and chart a political roadmap for the North African country. It will be the first democratic election since Tunisia’s independence in 1956. More than 100 parties are running for a place in the 217-seat assembly, […]
Voters in Tunisia Gear up for Historic Election
Posted October 22nd, 2011 at 9:45 am (UTC-5)
Ten months after the surprise toppling of long-time dictator Zine el Abidine Ben Ali, Tunisians head to the polls Sunday to vote in the country’s first ever democratic election in since its independence in 1956. More than 100 parties are running for a place in the 217-seat Constituent Assembly, a sharp contrast from past elections […]
Campaign Season Ends in Tunisia
Posted October 21st, 2011 at 11:10 pm (UTC-5)
Campaign rallies have ended in Tunisia where voters will cast ballots Sunday in the first elections since the revolution that toppled former president Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali in January. Members of some of the major political parties pumped music through loudspeakers at rallies in Tunis Friday as volunteers distributed leaflets. More than 100 parties are […]
Campaigning Wraps Up in Tunisia
Posted October 21st, 2011 at 3:10 am (UTC-5)
Campaigning is winding down in Tunisia on Friday as voters prepare to cast ballots in what will be the first elections since the revolution that topped former President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali in January. Voters on Sunday will choose 217 members of a constituent assembly that will write the country’s constitution. More than 10,000 candidates […]
Tunisian Police Use Tear Gas on Protesters
Posted October 14th, 2011 at 2:45 pm (UTC-5)
Tunisian police have used tear gas to disperse protesters who made a second attempt on Friday to march to a television station that aired a controversial film. Witnesses say the demonstrators were stopped by authorities as they moved near the Nessema TV station in Tunis. On Sunday police used tear gas to disperse hundreds of […]
Tunisian Police Use Teargas Against Islamist Protesters
Posted October 9th, 2011 at 9:05 pm (UTC-5)
Tunisian police used teargas Sunday to disperse hundreds of Islamists protesting a law barring women who wear the full-face veil from enrolling in university, and a television station’s decision to broadcast a film they said denigrates Islam. An Interior Ministry spokesman said police blocked the attackers – who were armed with stones, knives and batons […]
Turkey’s Erdogan Hails Arab Democracy Efforts in Tunisia
Posted September 15th, 2011 at 1:12 pm (UTC-5)
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Thursday that Islam and democracy are not contradictory. On the second leg of his North Africa tour, Mr. Erdogan spoke in Tunis where the “Arab Spring” protest movement began this year. After meeting with Tunisian prime minister Beji Caid Essebsi, Mr. Erdogan said “a Muslim can run a […]
Tunisia’s Ben Ali Convicted for Corrupt Property Deals
Posted July 28th, 2011 at 8:20 pm (UTC-5)
A Tunisian court has sentenced former president Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, his daughter and son-in-law in absentia to serve prison terms and ordered them to pay $100 million in damages for illicit property deals. The court Thursday convicted Mr. Ben Ali of corruption and abuse of power. He was accused in two separate cases of […]
Tunisia’s Ben Ali Again Convicted in Absentia
Posted July 28th, 2011 at 5:45 pm (UTC-5)
A Tunisian court has sentenced former president Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali in absentia to 16 years in prison, his third conviction in recent weeks. The court Thursday found Mr. Ben Ali guilty on charges that include corruption, property fraud and abuse of power. In two previous trials, the former strongman was convicted for embezzlement as […]
