Reuters AlertNet Full site
Homepage | Newsdesk | NGO Latest | Crisis briefings | Country profiles | MediaWatch | Jobs | Alerting | Login

NEWSDESK

Clashes in Tunisia town over price rises - sources
11 Apr 2008 01:34:14 GMT
Source: Reuters
TUNIS, April 10 (Reuters) - Stone-throwing demonstrators protesting against rising living costs and unemployment have clashed with police in Tunisia's central town of Redeyef over the past three days, trade union sources said on Thursday.

Violent protests are rare in the North African country of 10 million where the government of President Zine al Abidine Ben Ali, who has been in power since 1987, shows little tolerance of dissent.

Police arrested more than 20 people over the violence in Redeyef, situated in the phosphate mining region of Gasfa, but subsequently freed a number, said the sources, who declined to be identified.

An official source, who also declined to be named, said eight people had been charged with public disorder and damaging property.

No comment was immediately available from the government.

Tunisia has North Africa's biggest middle class but after years of improving living standards the rising prices of imported commodities are making people feel poorer.

In February, food inflation in Tunisia stood at 8.6 percent. (Reporting by Tarek Amara; Writing by Tom Pfeiffer, Editing by Ralph Gowling)


AlertNet news is provided by

Email this article       Send comments

NGO latest

•  Direct Relief International Recognizes World TB Day 2008
DRI - USA

MORE >>

Latest news

•  Clashes in Tunisia town over price rises - sources

•  Mideast can avert impending water crisis-World Bank

•  Jordan denies report on CIA renditions

•  Tunisia accused of engineering soft U.N. rights debate

•  Austria says Qaeda hostages can still be saved

MORE >>
AlertNet news is provided by

Del.icio.us Del.icio.us  |   Digg Digg  |   NewsVine NewsVine  |   Reddit Reddit   


Disclaimers |  Copyright |  Privacy |  Contact Us |  Feedback |  About Us |  RSS XML

Last updated:Fri Apr 11 01:31:16 2008