Opposition Coalition Calls for Referendum in Tunisia

Demonstrators attend a protest to mark the anniversary of a prominent activist's death and against allegations of police abuse, in Tunis, Tunisia February 6, 2021. (Reuters)
Demonstrators attend a protest to mark the anniversary of a prominent activist's death and against allegations of police abuse, in Tunis, Tunisia February 6, 2021. (Reuters)
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Opposition Coalition Calls for Referendum in Tunisia

Demonstrators attend a protest to mark the anniversary of a prominent activist's death and against allegations of police abuse, in Tunis, Tunisia February 6, 2021. (Reuters)
Demonstrators attend a protest to mark the anniversary of a prominent activist's death and against allegations of police abuse, in Tunis, Tunisia February 6, 2021. (Reuters)

The opposition Soumoud coalition called for a popular referendum on the current political system in Tunisia, with the hope of restoring power to the people.

The current system, said general coordinator of Soumoud, Houssem Hammi “has become incapable of saving the country from the greed of the ruling authority.”

He asserted to Asharq Al-Awsat that the coalition called for the referendum after the failure of all initiatives for political dialogue between the president, prime minister and parliament speaker, the ministerial reshuffle crisis and the disruption of the Constitutional Court for nearly six years, in addition to the recurring political crises.

Hammi urged Tunisians, who reject the collapse of the state and the failure of the democratic transition, to engage in saving the country, through active participation in mobilization and peaceful popular pressure to impose a regime change through the referendum.

The coalition said that the existing political system has failed on all political, health, social and economic levels.

He accused the regime of failing to resolve crises and ensuring a minimum level of stability,” stressing, that the system “has become a real obstacle to the normal functioning of state agencies, and thus is contributing more to the deterioration of the difficult economic and social conditions that Tunisia is experiencing.”



Safadi: We Cannot Afford Another War in the West Bank

Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi meets with his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bouhabib, not pictured, in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi meets with his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bouhabib, not pictured, in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Safadi: We Cannot Afford Another War in the West Bank

Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi meets with his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bouhabib, not pictured, in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi meets with his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bouhabib, not pictured, in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday that his country could not afford another war in the neighboring Israeli-occupied Palestinian West Bank, according to Reuters.

The Israeli military launched an operation in Jenin on Tuesday.

The offensive came one day after the inauguration of US President Donald Trump and just days after a ceasefire deal paused fighting between the Jewish state and the Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli assault has killed at least 10 Palestinians and injured 40 more, according to the Ramallah-based Palestinian health ministry.