Tunisia was the site of Carthage whose empire disputed the western Mediterranean with the early Roman Empire. After a long period as part of the Roman Empire it was conquered by the Muslim Arabs. The Fatimite Caliphate first had its seat in Tunisia before conquering Egypt.

At the beginning of the colonial era Tunisia was part of the Ottoman Empire. In the 19th century it was conquered by the French who ruled it as a protectorate from 1881 until 1956. Independence came under President Habib Bourguiba who ruled as a president for life until his failing sanity caused his removal in 1987 and replacement by what at first seemed to be becoming a multi-party system (but see Rights).

Although it is a neighbor of Libya and Algeria, the country has followed a pro-western policy and has continued to allow alcohol and women are allowed to work and vote. There are Muslim fundamentalists who would like to move to a more traditional policy.

Tunisia has a large tourist industry.

Arabic

Berber

French

Richard Miles - Carthage Must Be Destroyed Carthage Must be Destroyed: The Rise and Fall of an Ancient Civilization (Allen Lane History)

A long period of de facto single-party rule seemed to be (23 years ago) moving towards a multi-party system. Elections have shown support for Islamic fundamentalism whereas the government has followed a moderate pro-western cultural policy, partly to attract tourists.

In practice Benali was the head of a rapacious oligarchy.

But see this article Guardian.

January 2011 has seen riots sparked off by rises in world food prices (partly the result of climate disasters) which may indicate a new phase. What might replace the current dictator?

President Ben Ali resigned. (14/01/11) and fled to Saudi Arabia, where he died a few weeks later. His prime minister then declared himself acting president and called elections. The next day the Speaker of the House was declared acting president. Riots continued in the streets. Were they caused by the regime's "militia"? What will follow? Will this revolution spark off similar revolts in Egypt where a similar but much more oppressive oligarchy rules? In several other Arab states the potential exists for similar popular revolts. The events in Tunisia are considered to have been the trigger that set off the revolts in Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, Libya and possibly others.

On 27 February the Prime Minister who took over after Ben Ali resigned, resigned himself. Demonstrations continued, claiming that the people running the government were still associates of the deposed president. In December, 2011, Moncef Marzouki was elected as president of Tunisia.

Tourism, dates.

There are still political prisoners held without trial for such "offenses" as criticizing the government. Talk of multi-party systems must be discounted until there are no political prisoners.

The Sahara moves north.