Leaves Country in Turmoil
Qatar, Malta, France, U.A.E. all refused Ben Ali..
..entrance and refuge in their countries. Only Saudi Arabia allowed him to remain, at least for the time being. Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is, for now, the residence of the one-time ruler of Tunisia.
This story has shocked the entire world - why after three weeks of public revolution and military confrontation, the American news finally gives us some few words about this amazing development in the Arab world.
Read the real headlines -
Tonight Tunisia is without a leader! Airspace over Tunisia is CLOSED! Prime Minister says, "I am not able to do my duties at this time.."
That's right -- Ben Ali, ruler of Tunis for the last 4 decades -- who ruled his country with an iron fist - IS NOW ON THE RUN - Fleeing from one country to another --seeking refuge in Doha, Qatar - Paris, France - the island of Malta, refused again and finally to UAE where he is desperately seeking refuge from the Prince of Dubai…
The people WERE FED UP and wanted change - A TOTAL CHANGE FROM A TO Z -
WHAT HAPPENED? It all started when a man who could not find work, wanted to do something for a living - vegetable stand on the streets of a small village
police said did not have license, took his vegetable cart and all the contents, he had to do something - he poured fuel on himself & burned himself - fuel --died
the youth started to fight with the police, why didn't you let this man work -
finally you were not there to protect him from this death - the people started fighting the police - one of the boys kicked a policeman and he died
and the police kicked and beat a young man until he died - this fighting has been going on for the last 3 weeks - every day the president was offering job offers to the people -
and now the government is overthrown - the president has been kicked out -
1. Malta, 2. France (his former best friends), 3. Qatar - - now in U.A.E. begging for refugee status any place he can find it - Even his relatives were arrested running to the airport … it all started in a small village and grew to a huge problem - the president at first was very arrogant and would not listen to the people - more than 200 civilians were killed and the fighting is going on now and is likely to continue for weeks or months to come (it is at its worst today)…
Citizens of Tunis want him to be tried in an international court as a criminal to the innocent civilians - rejected everything - they say "Get out of our country - we don't you to lead us!"
Police were ordered to fight against the public, even beating and shooting the very people who they should be protecting.
The military was ordered to take on the people, using airplanes, tanks, soldiers - But the people would not turn back, and they said it all in one voice (even in English) "Even if we die, we won't give up…"
… and the fighting continued in the streets until it became obvious the people would not give up.
______________
And in other news...
The Tunisian leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was on Friday afternoon forced to step down and the Prime Minister is acting as the interim President, APA learns here from a reliable source in Tunis.
Meanwhile, reports say that the police have arrested some members of the Taraboulssi family (Ben Ali’s family-in-law) on Friday at the Tunis airport as they were trying to flee the country.
Earlier on Friday the government declared a state of emergency in the country as demonstrations were gaining ground and the death toll reportedly reaching 13 people since Thursday.
Eyewitnesses reported that the riot forces on Friday fired live bullets at demonstrators and wounded some in Tunis, despite the pledge made Thursday evening by the Tunisian leader to stop firing live bullets at riotiers.
On Friday afternoon, the army took control of the Tunis international airport and closed the country’s air space.
Other sources report that the Tunisian Prime Minister has decided to take over as the interim President after Ben Ali left the country.
It is reported that he left for Malta aided by Libya.
And in another report. . . .
President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia has been forced out of power. Information gathered from some media houses in France have it that Ben Ali sneaked out of the Presidential palace in Tunis, Tunisia, on Friday, January 14, to the mediterranean country, Malta.
Ben Ali has stepped down after 23 years in power, amid widespread protests on the streets of the capital Tunis.In a televised address, Prime Minister Mohammed Ghannouchi said he would be taking over.
A state of emergency was declared earlier, as rumbling nationwide protests over economic woes snowballed into anti-government demonstrations.
The BBC NEWS AFRICA website reported that police fired tear gas as thousands of protesters gathered outside the interior ministry.
Doctors say that 13 people were killed in overnight clashes in Tunis, and there are unconfirmed reports that five people have been killed in protests on Friday outside the capital.
Troops have surrounded the country's main international airport, Tunis Carthage, and the country's air space has been closed.
Mr Ghannouchi, 69, a former finance minister who has been Prime Minister since 1999, will serve as interim president.
In an address on state television, he promised to "respect the law and to carry out the political, economic and social reforms that have been announced".
The BBC's Arab affairs analyst Magdi Abdelhadi says Mr Ben Ali's demise will go down in history as the day that an Arab population rose and brought down a head of state they regarded as a dictator.
Abdelhadi added that Ben Ali's down fall may rattle the entire post-colonial order in North Africa and the wider Arab world.
Earlier, Mr Ben Ali, who had said in a TV address on Thursday night that he would relinquish power in 2014, said he was dismissing the government and dissolving parliament, and that new elections would be held within six months.
In his speech on Thursday night, Mr Ben Ali, who had governed Tunisia since 1987, announced he would stand down in 2014.
He said there was "no presidency for life" in Tunisia. He mentioned that he did not intend to amend the constitution to remove the upper age limit for presidential candidates, which would have allowed him to stand for a further term in 2014.
Ben Ali earlier this week blamed the unrest on "terrorists", adding he felt "massive regret" over the deaths of civilians in the protests.
On Thursday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned Arab leaders they would face growing unrest unless they enacted real economic and political reforms.
Mrs Clinton was speaking in Doha, Qatar, at the end of a four-nation visit to the Gulf.
Ben Ali, 74, was Tunisia's second president since independence from France in 1956. He was last re-elected in 2009 with 89.62% of the vote.
The state of emergency decree bans more than three people from gathering together in the open, and imposes a night-time curfew. Security forces have been authorised to open fire on people not obeying their orders.
Human rights groups say dozens of people have died in recent weeks as unrest swept the country and security forces have cracked down on the protests.
The protests started after an unemployed graduate set himself on fire when police tried to prevent him from selling vegetables without a permit. He died a few weeks later.
Faced with the on - going unpalatable situation, Tourism, which is key to Tunisia's economy and an important source of jobs is now under serious threats. UK tour operator Thomas Cook is pulling out all 1,800 of its customers currently on holiday in Tunisia.
"Thomas Cook and another holiday company, Thomson First Choice, are cancelling departures to Tunisia scheduled for Sunday, January 16. However, Thomson are not bringing home visitors already in Tunisia early," the BBC reported.
Keep watch the real scenes recorded on cell phones in Tunisia (click on photo below)
For more updates on real news, as it comes available to us.. and remember to:
READ - RATE - COMMENT - SHARE
(It's up to you to make it happen)
Comments
RSS feed for comments to this post