Tunisia Opposition Stages Protest Demanding Ghannouchi Resignation

Tunisian parliament Speaker Rached al-Ghannouchi. (Reuters)
Tunisian parliament Speaker Rached al-Ghannouchi. (Reuters)
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Tunisia Opposition Stages Protest Demanding Ghannouchi Resignation

Tunisian parliament Speaker Rached al-Ghannouchi. (Reuters)
Tunisian parliament Speaker Rached al-Ghannouchi. (Reuters)

Tunisian opposition groups staged on Monday protests in the capital Tunis, demanding the resignation of parliament Speaker Rached al-Ghannouchi.

The protest, held in front of the parliament building, is part of series of movements that are demanding an overhaul of Tunisia's political system. The protests will culminate in a major rally on June 14, when curfew imposed over the novel coronavirus outbreak is lifted, and during which the opposition demands will be declared and put to a popular referendum.

Several other sit-ins were held throughout the country to voice their rejection of recent political and parliamentary developments.

The opposition has criticized Ghannouchi for his errors, the latest of which was his telephone call with head of the Libyan Government of National Accord, Fayez al-Sarraj.

Monday's sit-in took place two days before Ghannouchi, who also heads the moderate Islamist Ennahda movement, is set to be grilled at a parliamentary hearing.

Opposition political sources said Ennahda is wary of the protests, fearing that they would lead to a popular movement similar to the one that erupted in 2013 and saw it ousted from power.

One of the leaders of the protest movement, former MP Fatima al-Masadi declared that "all people are racing to oust the rotten political regime and change the current political system. Everyone is pointing in different directions, but they are united in one goal."

Another organizer of the rallies said that among the people's many demands is the dissolution of parliament. He added that none of the more than 200 Tunisian parties have met the demands of the revolution, but they have only compounded crises.

Several political parties, however, distanced themselves from the latest protests.

Despite the sharp differences between it and Ennahda, the Free Destourian Party announced that it was not involved in Monday's rallies.

A member of the Democratic Patriots' Unified Party said it too will not join the protests because they do not have defined goals.

Former member of the Nidaa Tounes movement, Khalid Shaukat, said the country does not need more political or ideological disputes, adding that it was "absurd to ruin our nations with our own hands."



Sudan Army Surrounds Khartoum Airport and Nearby Areas 

A fighter loyal to the army patrols a market area in Khartoum on March 24, 2025. (AFP)
A fighter loyal to the army patrols a market area in Khartoum on March 24, 2025. (AFP)
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Sudan Army Surrounds Khartoum Airport and Nearby Areas 

A fighter loyal to the army patrols a market area in Khartoum on March 24, 2025. (AFP)
A fighter loyal to the army patrols a market area in Khartoum on March 24, 2025. (AFP)

The Sudanese army is encircling Khartoum airport and surrounding areas, two military sources told Reuters on Wednesday, marking another gain in its two-year-old war with a rival armed group, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Separately, Sudan's army said in a statement it had taken control of the Tiba al-Hassanab camp in Jabal Awliya, describing this as the RSF's main base in central Sudan and its last stronghold in Khartoum.

The army had long been on the back foot in a conflict that threatens to partition the country and has caused a humanitarian disaster. But it has recently made gains and has retaken territory from the RSF in the center of the country.

The army seized control of the presidential palace in downtown Khartoum on Friday.

Witnesses said on Wednesday that RSF had mainly stationed its forces in southern Khartoum to secure their withdrawal from the capital via bridges to the neighboring city of Omdurman.

The UN calls the situation in Sudan the world's largest humanitarian crisis, with famine in several locations and disease across the country of 50 million people.

The war erupted two years ago as Sudan was planning a transition to democratic rule.

The army and RSF had joined forces after forcing Omar al-Bashir from power in 2019 and later in ousting the civilian leadership.