Tunisia Parties Announce National Conference to ‘Salvage’ the Country

Tunisians demonstrate in front of the Court of First Instance, demanding the release of those arrested during recent demonstrations in Tunis, Tunisia, 17 February 2021. EPA/MOHAMED MESSARA
Tunisians demonstrate in front of the Court of First Instance, demanding the release of those arrested during recent demonstrations in Tunis, Tunisia, 17 February 2021. EPA/MOHAMED MESSARA
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Tunisia Parties Announce National Conference to ‘Salvage’ the Country

Tunisians demonstrate in front of the Court of First Instance, demanding the release of those arrested during recent demonstrations in Tunis, Tunisia, 17 February 2021. EPA/MOHAMED MESSARA
Tunisians demonstrate in front of the Court of First Instance, demanding the release of those arrested during recent demonstrations in Tunis, Tunisia, 17 February 2021. EPA/MOHAMED MESSARA

General coordinator of the Tunisian opposition’s Soumoud Coalition Hussam Al-Hami has revealed plans to hold a “popular national conference” by July as an attempt to “salvage” the country.

The conference would follow local and regional conferences, in addition to economic, political and social workshops in cooperation with national organizations, associations and parties.

Its purpose is to come out with practical recommendations to resolve Tunisia’s crises.

The revelation was made during a meeting held by representatives of parties, associations and organizations in Tunis on Wednesday to discuss preparations for the conference and to present their initial visions on it.

Hami told Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that the conference would bring together all civil society components for proposals on Tunisia’s main issues, and to find solutions to the economic, social and political crises in the country.

He hoped that parties working on reform programs for years would consider the conference as an “opportunity” to press for their demands.

The session was attended by partisans and politicians, mostly from the left-wing, in addition to deputies, syndicate figures and representatives of associations.

In a related matter, head of Ennahda Movement's Shura Council Abdelkarim Harouni called for Prime Minister Hisham Al-Mashishi to chair a political dialogue among parties and organizations to overcome the political deadlock caused by the dispute between the two heads of the executive authority.

For his part, Mashishi approved a cabinet reshuffle that includes 11 portfolios to hinder any potential coalition between the president and the Tunisian General Labor Union.

A constitutional crisis erupted when the president rejected this amendment.



Israeli Strike in Syria Kills 5 Soldiers

People fleeing from Lebanon arrive on the Syrian side of the border with Lebanon in Jdeidat Yabus in southwestern Syria on September 25, 2024. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
People fleeing from Lebanon arrive on the Syrian side of the border with Lebanon in Jdeidat Yabus in southwestern Syria on September 25, 2024. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
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Israeli Strike in Syria Kills 5 Soldiers

People fleeing from Lebanon arrive on the Syrian side of the border with Lebanon in Jdeidat Yabus in southwestern Syria on September 25, 2024. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
People fleeing from Lebanon arrive on the Syrian side of the border with Lebanon in Jdeidat Yabus in southwestern Syria on September 25, 2024. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)

An overnight Israeli airstrike on a military site in the area of Kfar Yabous in Syria near the border with Lebanon killed five Syrian army soldiers and injured another, Syrian state news agency SANA reported Friday, citing an unnamed military official.

Israel's military did not immediately acknowledge the strike. Israel regularly targets military sites in Syria and facilities linked to Iran and the Lebanon’s Hezbollah but rarely acknowledges them.

Those strikes have become more frequent as Hezbollah has exchanged fire with Israeli forces for the past 11 months against the backdrop of Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Tens of thousands of Lebanese and Syrians have fled across the border from Lebanon into Syria since the beginning of the week amid intense Israeli bombardment that Israel says is targeting Hezbollah fighters and weapons. The strikes have killed an estimated 700 people to date, including at least 150 women and children.