Thousands Protest in Tunis Against President Kais Saied, Economic Crisis

Thousands of Tunisians took to the streets in the capital, Tunis, to protest against President Kais Saied. The parallel protests on Saturday by the Ennahdha party and the Free Constitutional Party, who are opposed to each other but are united in their opposition to Saied, denounced the president’s takeover of power and demanded accountability for the country’s economic crisis. The protesters changed “Revolution against dictator Kais” and “The coup will fall,” the AFP news agency reported. The march was organized by the National Salvation Front, a coalition of opposition parties. More than a year ago, Saied dismissed his government and seized a number of powers by granting himself executive authority in what critics have called a coup; he later announced that he would rule by decree until the approval of a new constitution. In July, about a quarter of the 9 million registered voters in Tunisia turned out for a referendum on a new constitution that gave Saied almost total power by putting the country’s president in supreme command of the army, gave the president full executive control and allows the president to appoint a government without the approval of parliament.  On Saturday, Tunisia reached a preliminary agreement with the International Monetary Fund for a rescue package loan of $1.9 billion to help it restore economic stability and strengthen social safety nets.