Thousands hold demos in Tunisia

Thousands of Tunisians have taken to the streets in several cities across the country to express their outrage at the assassination of prominent opposition figure Mohamed Brahmi.

Mass protest rallies were held in the cities of Sousse, Sidi Bouzid, Sfax and the capital Tunis on Thursday.

In Tunis, the protesters gathered in front of the Interior Ministry building and called for the closure of parliament.

In Sfax, some 270 kilometers (170 miles) southeast of the capital, protesters reportedly hurled stones at police. In response, police used tear gas to disperse the demonstrators.

“Thousands have taken to the streets. People have blocked roads and set tires alight. People are very angry,” a resident of Sidi Bouzid was quoted as saying.

On Thursday morning, unidentified gunmen shot and killed Brahmi in front of his house in Tunis in the second such assassination this year.

Prime Minister Ali Larayedh condemned the killing and said, “We are against all the calls to dissolve the government and the Constituent Assembly to create a (power) vacuum.”

Brahmi, who was a member of the Popular Front party, held a seat in the Constituent Assembly tasked with writing a new constitution following the 2011 revolution.

The assassination of leftist opposition figure Shokri belaid outside his home in the capital in early February triggered violent demonstrations across the country, with the headquarters of the ruling Ennahda party being attacked in more than a dozen cities.

Tunisia, the birthplace of pro-democracy protests across North Africa and the Middle East, is struggling with a democratic changeover after the overthrow of its Western-backed dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in 2011.