| Submit your comments on this article |
| Africa North |
| Benali flees Tunisia |
| 2011-01-15 |
| [Ennahar] The situation in Tunisia has developed these past twenty-four hours of popular protest, Tuesday and Wednesday, there is even talk of the fall of the Tunisian President Zinelabidine Benali. Last Tuesday, the Tunisian president makes the decision to sack the head of the Tunisian army, General Rachid Ben Amar and replaces him by intelligence chief. No official statement on this decision or the reasons for the dismissal was announced. But the reason is that the army refused to intervene and confront the demonstrators. Hours before, websites and forums publish a video of the Tunisian army units protecting the demonstrators against the police riot. On the videos, you could hear the protesters shouting "Long live the army". In the same evening of Tuesday, the Iranian channel "El Aâlem" broadcasts a report according to which the president's wife Benali would have decamped abroad with her daughters. Social networking websites like facebook, youtube and tweeter, publish video showing significant crowd of Morocco and Tunisia at Montreal airport after being informed of the arrival of the Tunisian president's wife with her daughter and her stepson. According to these sites, Canadian police have helped escape Leila Benali and members of her family for fear of seeing them attacked by Tunisian immigrants. Wednesday morning, the Tunisian authorities announced the president's decision to release all those jugged during the demonstrations before announcing the dismissal of Interior Minister. President Benali has also ordered an investigation into the involvement of some officials, without citing names, in cases of corruption. Considered by some experts as "Powder into the eyes", i.e., a temptation to control the situation. Despite this, protests have continued in Tunis and the rest of the major Tunisian cities reaching even southern regions on the border with Libya. |
| Posted by:Fred |