Inside Story

Uncertain times for Tunisian army

We ask if the Tunisian military will tolerate political change and what role it will play in the country’s future.

After days of rioting, Tunisia’s interim leadership says the security situation is now improving. But with President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali gone, there is a power vacuum – and many are wondering what comes next.

Fouad Mebazza, Tunisia’s parliamentary speaker, was sworn-in as interim president on Saturday. He has promised elections within 60 days.

In the meantime troops are out on the streets to restore order after violence and looting. But as the political uncertainty continues, many Tunisians are wondering what the army’s role will now be.

A key moment during the weeks of protests came earlier this week when the army’s chief-of-staff was said to have refused a presidential order to open fire on unarmed protesters.

But does that necessarily mean the army will tolerate political change?

Inside Story discusses with Amine Ghali, a programme director for the Kawa-kibi Democracy Transition Center, Jeremy Keenan, a North Africa security expert and author of several books on the Maghreb region, and Blake Hounshell, the managing editor of Foreign Policy magazine.

This episode of Inside Story aired on Sunday, January 16, 2011.