Tunisia Confrontations Deepen

There are reports this afternoon of serious clashes in the Tunisian capital, which has generally been kept calmer than the provinces during the current troubles, and some reports now say the death toll may be 50 or more so far in the confrontations of the past few weeks (the government grudgingly admits to 23 or so). There are also reports among dissidents that the First Lady (Leila Trebelsi, wife of President Ben Ali) has left the country for the UAE.

At this point, some three weeks and two Presidential addresses into the crisis, the goverment still has not managed to put the lid on the protests, and each additional death further inflames public opinion. As the Western media finally begin to notice, the Arab media are watching in something like awed fascination, with a "could it happen here?" undercurrent: see Marc Lynch on the "Arab regimes on edge."

I am a lot less skeptical than I was 10 days ago that this may be approaching a turning point.

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