Two killed in Tunisia protests

07 February 2011

Protests were triggered in Kef after a senior officer slapped a woman

Tunisian police have opened fire on protestors in the north-western town of Kef killing at least two people.

The protests in Kef which lies 175 kilometres south-west of the capital Tunis are reported to have started after a senior police officer slapped a woman in the face.. People were protesting in front of the police station and trying to occupy the premises. Later, protestor threw rocks and fire bombs at the forces guarding the building.

The incident also wounded 17 others.

Protests broke out across Tunisia earlier in January against the regime of former president Zine el-Abedine Ben Ali over poverty and unemployment. The protests caused Ben Ali to flee the country on 14 January(MEED 19:1:11).

The protests in Tunisia sparked a series of protests across the entire Middle East, most violently in Egypt.

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