Violent protests erupted in Tunisia due to deteriorating economic conditions

SANAA, Jan. 17 (YPA) – Witnesses and local media said that violent night confrontations between police and youths broke out on Saturday evening in at least six Tunisian cities, including the capital Tunis and the coastal city of Sousse, amid discontent over the difficult economic and social situation.

Witnesses in Sousse said that security forces fired tear gas canisters to disperse hundreds of protesters who blocked roads and burned tires.

Security sources said that young men broke into shops and stole their contents. Confrontations took place in the city of the major castle, also bordering Sousse.
Violent protests also erupted in several areas of the capital, including Al-Tadamon, Al-Malaseen, Foshana and Sijumi neighborhood.
There were protests and riots in El Kef, Bizerte and Siliana, in the north of the country.
The violent confrontations come as Tunisia commemorates the tenth anniversary of the Tunisian revolution that overthrew the late President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in protest against poverty and widespread unemployment and sparked the Arab Spring uprisings.