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Tunisia: Presidential Election heading for run-off vote
Tunisia’s new government is already facing tough choices, with lenders demanding difficult reforms in public spending to boost growth and create jobs. At the same time, it has launched a crackdown on Islamist militants linked to al-Qaeda who have attacked the armed forces and killed two secularist opposition leaders last year.
Tunisia was the first to topple its long-standing ruler, giving birth to the “Arab Spring” revolts that followed in Libya, Egypt and Yemen and the war in Syria.
Deal-making between secular and Islamist rivals has been a feature of the political stability Tunisia has enjoyed compared to its chaotic neighbor Libya. Tunisia’s Islamists have taken a more flexible approach to allowing officials in the Ben Ali era to return to politics, and avoided the turmoil that has gripped Libya since long-time ruler Muammar Gaddafi was deposed in 2011.
Source: Reuters
