Tunisia Gradually Eases Coronavirus Restrictions, Signs of Life Return

Emergency doctors exit the Tunisian health ministry after collecting supplies (AFP)
Emergency doctors exit the Tunisian health ministry after collecting supplies (AFP)
TT
20

Tunisia Gradually Eases Coronavirus Restrictions, Signs of Life Return

Emergency doctors exit the Tunisian health ministry after collecting supplies (AFP)
Emergency doctors exit the Tunisian health ministry after collecting supplies (AFP)

Signs of life are returning to Tunisia after authorities began easing restrictions with the gradual lifting of the comprehensive lockdown imposed amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tunisia started the first stage of the national strategy for a partial lifting of lockdown which includes three phases: from May 4 to 24, from May 24 to June 4, and from June 4 to 14.

Several employees have resumed their work in the public and private sectors.

Authorities also resumed transportation within the governorates, given that passengers obtain a license to move around and wear protective masks to avoid the reemergence of the coronavirus.

Several shops, including blacksmiths, hairdressers, and carpenters opened for business. Taxi drivers also began transporting passengers who are afraid to use public transportation where the risk of contracting the virus is considerably higher.

Health Minister Abdellatif Mekki stressed that it is obligatory to wear masks, reiterating the importance of maintaining social distancing and taking precautions while using public transportation during the upcoming period.

Authorities announced that people returning to work should obtain administrative licenses, while respecting health measures.

The Tunisian authorities indicated that the gradual lifting of lockdown could be reversed in the event of a second wave of virus infections.

Abdulhamid Ammar, an employee, said people should not be reassured about the new measures, stressing that everyone must adhere to the health measures “until we get out of this dark tunnel.”

Moez al-Hazmi, who is a barber, happily confirmed that the new stage is like “a second life” in facing the virus, indicating that people should be careful after the pandemic succeeded in eliminating the normal lifestyle. He indicated that it is unreasonable to continue living during these conditions.

Tunisia has 1,018 confirmed coronavirus cases with 406 recovering and 43 deaths, while 643 cases are under medical observation.



Türkiye Backing Syria’s Military and Has No Immediate Withdrawal Plans, Defense Minister Says 

Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler attends a signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding on establishing a mine countermeasures naval group in the Black Sea, aimed at clearing mines floating there as a result of the war in Ukraine, in Istanbul, Türkiye, January 11, 2024. (Reuters)
Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler attends a signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding on establishing a mine countermeasures naval group in the Black Sea, aimed at clearing mines floating there as a result of the war in Ukraine, in Istanbul, Türkiye, January 11, 2024. (Reuters)
TT
20

Türkiye Backing Syria’s Military and Has No Immediate Withdrawal Plans, Defense Minister Says 

Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler attends a signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding on establishing a mine countermeasures naval group in the Black Sea, aimed at clearing mines floating there as a result of the war in Ukraine, in Istanbul, Türkiye, January 11, 2024. (Reuters)
Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler attends a signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding on establishing a mine countermeasures naval group in the Black Sea, aimed at clearing mines floating there as a result of the war in Ukraine, in Istanbul, Türkiye, January 11, 2024. (Reuters)

Türkiye is training and advising Syria's armed forces and helping improve its defenses, and has no immediate plans for the withdrawal or relocation of its troops stationed there, Defense Minister Yasar Guler told Reuters.

Türkiye has emerged as a key foreign ally of Syria's new government since opposition groups - some of them backed for years by Ankara - ousted former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in December to end his family's five-decade rule.

It has promised to help rebuild neighboring Syria and facilitate the return of millions of Syrian civil war refugees, and played a key role last month getting US and European sanctions on Syria lifted.

The newfound Turkish influence in Damascus has raised Israeli concerns and risked a standoff or worse in Syria between the regional powers.

In written answers to questions from Reuters, Guler said Türkiye and Israel, which carried out its latest airstrikes on southern Syria late on Tuesday, are continuing de-confliction talks to avoid military accidents in the country.

Türkiye’s overall priority in Syria is preserving its territorial integrity and unity, and ridding it of terrorism, he said, adding Ankara was supporting Damascus in these efforts.

"We have started providing military training and consultancy services, while taking steps to increase Syria's defense capacity," Guler said, without elaborating on those steps.

Named to the post by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan two years ago, Guler said it was too early to discuss possible withdrawal or relocation of the more than 20,000 Turkish troops in Syria.

Ankara controlled swathes of northern Syria and established dozens of bases there after several cross-border operations in recent years against Kurdish militants it deems terrorists.

This can "only be re-evaluated when Syria achieves peace and stability, when the threat of terrorism in the region is fully removed, when our border security is fully ensured, and when the honorable return of people who had to flee is done," he said.

NATO member Türkiye has accused Israel of undermining Syrian peace and rebuilding with its military operations there in recent months and, since late 2023, has also fiercely criticized Israel's assault on Gaza.

But the two regional powers have been quietly working to establish a de-confliction mechanism in Syria.

Guler described the talks as "technical level meetings to establish a de-confliction mechanism to prevent unwanted events" or direct conflict, as well as "a communication and coordination structure".

"Our efforts to form this line and make it fully operational continue. Yet it should not be forgotten that the de-confliction mechanism is not a normalization," he told Reuters.