Nationwide curfew imposed in Tunisia

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Nationwide curfew imposed in Tunisia



A nationwide curfew has been declared in Tunisia.

It follows four days of protests and rioting over jobs and economic conditions.

The country’s Interior Ministry said in a statement that, due to the risk to public and private property, it was imposing a curfew from 8pm to 5 am with immediate effect.

On a visit to Paris, Prime Minister Habib Essid said the situation was under control.

“It is an economic problem, it is about unemployment. We have a set of policies to try and solve this issue, it is one of the government’s main challenges.

“We do not have a magic wand. We cannot solve the problem of unemployment in one go.”

French President Francois Hollande confirmed that France would provide one billion euros over five years to help Tunisia transition to democracy.

The context

The protests started on Tuesday in the central town of Kasserine.

A young man reportedly killed himself after being turned down for a job in the public sector.

Demonstrators have stormed local government buildings and clashed with riot police.

A man was reportedly taken to hospital on Friday morning after trying to set fire to himself.

One police officer has been killed and dozens of people have been injured.

The protests have since spread to other areas of the country.

The unrest is the worst since an uprising five years ago that toppled leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

What they are saying

“We are Tunisians as well,” a female protester in Kasserine told Euronews. “I have been struggling for four years. We are not asking for much, but we are fighting for our youth. We struggled so much for them.”

-- (c) Copyright Euronews 2016-01-23