Tunisian President Kais Saied has denied he staged a coup by sacking the country's prime minister and suspending Parliament, as the country's biggest party urged dialogue.
In a video posted by the president's office on Facebook late on Monday, Mr Saied said those who describe his latest decisions as a coup need to “revise your constitutional lessons”.
He said his actions were supported by Article 80 of Tunisia's constitution, which says the president may take special action “in a state of imminent danger threatening the integrity of the country and the country’s security and independence” in consultation with the prime minister and speaker of Parliament.
While Mr Saied has a background in constitutional law, experts disagree over his interpretation of Article 80.
Parliament has been suspended for 30 days.
Tunisia's main civil society groups including the powerful labour union on Tuesday warned Mr Saied not to extend the extraordinary measures he announced on Sunday beyond a month.
In a statement the groups, which also included the journalists' and lawyers' syndicates and the human rights league, called on Mr Saied to lay out "a participatory roadmap" for the crisis
Mr Saied called on Tunisians to remain calm and not respond to any provocations asking them to take to the streets, saying “the most danger a nation can face is internal explosion".
On Monday afternoon, the presidency announced the dismissals of Defence Minister Ibrahim Bartaji and acting Justice Minister Hasna Ben Slimane.
Tunisia's biggest party, the Islamist Ennahda, also urged calm on Tuesday, issuing instructions to its supporters through party branches not to resume a sit-in outside parliament and to avoid protests, in a reversal of an earlier call by its leader Rached Ghannouchi to take to the streets.
Though some senior party members wanted to retain a street presence, its leaders decided to avoid any further escalation and allow a period of calm, two Ennahda officials said earlier on Tuesday.
Clashes broke out outside the army-barricaded parliament on Monday between supporters of the president and those opposed to the move and soldiers blockaded the assembly in Tunis while Mr Saied backers hurled stones, bottles and insults at supporters of the Islamist-inspired Ennahda, whose leader was barred entry to the complex.
But the demonstrations died down later in the day and the area outside parliament remained empty on Tuesday after the presidency extended an overnight curfew in place to combat the coronavirus and banned gatherings of more than three people until August 27.
Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi, who is at his home and not under arrest, a source close to him told Reuters, said he would not be a "disruptive element" and was ready to hand over power to whomever Mr Saied appointed.
The president, who has not said when he will appoint a new prime minister or relinquish emergency powers, has also ordered that state administrations and foreign institutions stop work for two days.
Ennahda called Mr Saied's move "a coup d'etat against the revolution and against the constitution." It warned that its followers "will defend the revolution". Later the party called for dialogue to resolve the crisis.
The powerful Tunisian General Labour Union, which played a key role in the 2011 uprising, has said it is open to facilitating dialogue and that the current situation must be temporary.
The union also called on the president to give guarantees that he is not seeking a wider power grab and that all actions are in accordance with the constitution.
The crisis follows months of deadlock between the president, Mr Mechichi and Mr Ghannouchi, who is also the parliament Speaker. This has crippled the Covid-19 response, as deaths have surged to one of the world's highest per capita rates.
More than 18,000 people have died of coronavirus in a nation of 12 million.
How the world responded
The US said it was too early to label the action a coup and called on the birthplace of the Arab uprisings not to "squander its democratic gains".
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he "encouraged President Saied to adhere to the principles of democracy".
State Department spokesman Ned Price said the US had urged all parties to avoid escalations that could lead to violence.
"We are particularly troubled by reports that media offices have been closed and urge scrupulous respect for freedom of expression and other civil rights," Mr Price said.
In a phone call with the Tunisian foreign minister, Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit expressed “complete support for the Tunisian people".
A statement said the Cairo-based league hoped Tunisia would “move swiftly past the current turbulent phase in restoring stability".
A Tunisian political source told Reuters that neighbouring Algeria had pushed both Mr Saied and his opponents to step back from any confrontation to avoid further destabilisation or the intervention of any external forces.
The UN urged all parties to work towards solving the crisis.
“We call on all stakeholders to exercise restraint, refrain from violence and ensure that the situation remains calm,” UN spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters on Monday. “All disputes and disagreements should be resolved through dialogue.”
Both Saudi Arabia and Kuwait held phone calls with Tunisia's foreign minister on Monday.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan “stressed the kingdom's keenness on the security and stability of Tunisia and supports everything that would achieve this,” the Saudi state news agency reported.
Despite the removal of dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in 2011 and a transition to democracy, Tunisia has failed to recover economically or politically.
Covid-19 has driven the country of 11.5 million further into financial distress, as the mainstay of the economy, tourism, has faltered under worldwide lockdowns. Tunisia saw its economy contract by eight per cent last year.
The Details
Article 15
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Our rating: 4/5
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Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
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JAPANESE GRAND PRIX INFO
Schedule (All times UAE)
First practice: Friday, 5-6.30am
Second practice: Friday, 9-10.30am
Third practice: Saturday, 7-8am
Qualifying: Saturday, 10-11am
Race: Sunday, 9am-midday
Race venue: Suzuka International Racing Course
Circuit Length: 5.807km
Number of Laps: 53
Watch live: beIN Sports HD
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Director: Tom Tykwer
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What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
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Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Sarfira
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Employees: 100-120
Amount raised: $2.5m from BitMex Ventures and Blockwater. Another $6m raised from MEVP, Coinbase, Vision Ventures, CMT, Jimco and DIFC Fintech Fund
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A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
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Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
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Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Xpanceo
Started: 2018
Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality
Funding: $40 million
Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)
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