AP reports that Tunisia’s Islamist led government has agreed to step down after negotiations with opposition parties that begin next week. As per the deal, there will be three weeks of negotiations after which an interim technocratic non-partisan government will assume office.
Tunisia has been engulfed in a state of crisis after leading opposition figure Mohammad Brahmi was gunned down in front of his family on July 25. The opposition has accused the Al Nahda government of being overly tolerant of radical Islamists. Tunisia has long had a reputation of being one of the most secular countries in the world.
The deal will bring to an end two years of rule by the current government. It is worth noting that the Arab spring was sparked off in Tunisia, when a fruit seller immolated himself to protest against the corruption of a decades old authoritarian government.
