Riots over economy flare up in Tunisian capital

Local criminals take advantage of mayhem and loot stores as crowds protest outside government buildings over new taxes

A Tunisian flag (photo credit: CC BY Bellyglad, Flickr)
A Tunisian flag (photo credit: CC BY Bellyglad, Flickr)

TUNIS, Tunisia — Riots over Tunisia’s economy flared overnight Friday in a suburb of the capital.

Crowds protested outside the government finance buildings in the low-income neighborhood of Ettaddamon over new taxes levied by the government late Friday.

Police reported that local criminals took advantage and began looting stores and clashing with authorities. They were dispersed with tear gas.

The riots come right after a new caretaker prime minister, Mehdi Jomaa, was charged with forming a technocratic cabinet to guide the country to new elections.

The outgoing government had levied new taxes to confront massive budget deficit, prompting protests around the country on Wednesday.

Since Tunisia’s 2011 revolution, the economy has suffered, fueling social unrest.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press.

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