TUNISIA PLEDGES NEW GOVT AFTER OPPOSITION LEADER'S KILLING
TUNIS, Feb 7, 2013 (AFP) - Tunisia's premier has pledged to form a government of technocrats ahead of new elections, after the murder of opposition leader Chokri Belaid sparked deadly protests and attacks on the ruling party's offices.
Furious demonstrators built barricades in central Tunis on Wednesday and clashed with police, and four opposition groups including Belaid's Popular Front bloc said they were pulling out of the national assembly.One policeman was killed after being hit on the chest by rocks in Tunis, the interior ministry said, while an ambulance carrying Belaid's body to the city centre was accompanied by crowds who pressed against the vehicle to protect it.
Islamist Prime Minis-
Furious demonstrators built barricades in central Tunis and clashed with police
ter Hamadi Jebali said in a televised address after Belaid was shot dead outside his home in Tunis Wednesday that he would form a new, non-political administration ahead of fresh elections.
Jebali did not specify that he was dissolving the existing government, nor did he set a date for the reshuffle which must be confirmed by the national as- sembly.
President Moncef Marzouki denounced the killing of Belaid, an outspoken critic of his government, as an “odious assassination”.The ruling Islamist Ennahda party, which Belaid's family accused of being behind the killing, rejected any involvement.
Belaid's Popular Front and other opposition parties called for a general strike to protest against the assassination.
The United States led Western nations who reacted with dismay at the killing, while Human Rights Watch said the authorities should ensure those responsible were brought to justice.