Tunisia sacked its interior minister and deployed troops in Tunis Wednesday as weeks of violent protests reached the capital and two people were reported killed in fresh clashes further south. Security forces fired tear gas on hundreds on demonstrators in the heaviest protests yet in the capital after weeks of protests erupted in mid-December in the worst unrest against the authoritarian regime in more than 20 years.
"Shut down (your stores), shut down," bystanders urged street vendors as police fired tear gas at the entrance of the souks (markets) of the Medina in Tunis' old city where hundreds of youths chanted anti-government slogans. In a sign of increasing government concern after rioting in Tunis overnight, troops took up positions early Wednesday at major intersections and the entrance to the city's Ettadhamen quarter where riots broke out late Tuesday.
Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi announced the dismissal of interior minister Rafik Belhaj Kacem, responsible for the police, amid criticism that security forces used excessive force against demonstrators. The government says 21 people were killed in three days of unrest in the western Kasserine region, but labour unions and rights groups said more than 50 were dead.
Two more people were reported killed by police in the central town of Douz, where violence erupted for the first time in the spreading unrest. Another four or five people were wounded in the gunfire, a witness told AFP on condition of anonymity. Troops deploying in Tunis took up positions around the headquarters of the state broadcaster and a central tramway station. Extra police and special intervention units also stood guard in a central square, across from the French embassy and the main cathedral, where on Tuesday police had dispersed demonstrators gathering to condemn the deadly crackdown.
Ghannouchi also announced the release of all people arrested in the unrest, "with the exception of those involved in acts of vandalism." He gave no figure for the number of people rounded up.
He named Ahmed Friaa, a university academic and former minister, as Kacem's successor as head of the interior ministry. Ghannouchi said allegations by opposition and non-government groups of corruption would be investigated by a special commission, and he announced payments for unemployed graduates who undertook useful part-time work while they awaited permanent jobs.
The prime minister also made clear that troops were deployed solely "to protect public institutions from acts of vandalism and looting." Queried about reports of sniper fire in the central town of Kasserine and allegations by residents that security forces were involved in looting, the premier pledged that they would be investigated. "We are deeply saddened for all the casualties, all Tunisians," he said, without giving figures.
"We are open to dialogue," he also said, noting that the opposition and civil society would take part in a national conference on jobs next month. Authoritarian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali announced Monday that 300,000 new jobs would be created but the measures were judged inadequate by the opposition. Ghannouchi said the opposition and civil groups would be able to take part in a national conference on employment promised for next month.