Three people have been killed in clashes between anti-government demonstrators and security forces in the Tunisian capital Tunis.
Riot police and masked police forces in civilian clothes earlier fired warning shots and tear gas at hundreds of protestors, some of whom responded by hurling stones.
‘Three people died from the dozen who were wounded during clashes and were transferred to hospital for treatment,’ the interior ministry said in a statement. The description suggested the dead were demonstrators.
‘Several members of the security forces were wounded to different degrees,’ it said without giving a number.
The demonstration followed a similar protest in the capital yesterday demanding the resignation of the interim Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi.
Ghannouchi was part of the regime of president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who was dramatically toppled on January 14 following weeks of demonstrations over unemployment and high living costs.
The fall of the authoritarian ruler after 23 years in power sparked similar uprisings in the Arab world.
The interior ministry said more than 100 people were arrested for involvement in the clashes today and 88 people on Friday. It blamed the violence on ‘agitators’ it said had infiltrated peaceful demonstrators.
In response to growing protests, the interim government, which was established in the days after Ben Ali fled, announced yesterday that it would hold elections by mid-July.
Ghannouchi's caretaker government has faced regular protests demanding it root out vestiges of the old regime.
