Tunisian President Promises New Government 'in Days' Following July Takeover

On Friday parliamentary Speaker Rached Ghannouchi declared the unicameral Assembly of the Representatives of the People back in session — in defiance of President Kais Saied's orders — and urged MPs to return.

Tunisia's president assured his French counterpart that a new government will be formed within days — after he suspended democratic institutions in July.

Tunisian President Kais Saied spoke to France's Emmanuel Macron on Saturday, the Elysee Palace said. The north African country was a colony of France until 1956.

Ceremonial President Saied dissolved the government in July and suspended the parliament, taking executive power for himself in response to protests against government incompetence and corruption amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Saied appointed Najla Bouden Romdhane on Thursday as the new prime minister, the first Tunisian women to hold that position — drawing some foreign approval after months of pressure to end the crisis.

In Tunisia, male president stages a coup and appoints first ever female prime minister in Arab world, in apparent attempt to confuse Western observers who prioritize liberalism over democracy

— Shadi Hamid (@shadihamid) September 30, 2021

Parliamentary Speaker Rached Ghannouchi declared the unicameral Assembly of the Representatives of the People back in session on Friday in defiance of Saied and urged MPs to return.

Tunisia was the touchstone of the so-called Arab Spring series of uprisings across the Middle East in 2011, when the suicide of a street trader led to mass protests, and the resignation of long-serving President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. Saeid was elected president in 2019.