State of emergency declared in Tunisia

After weeks of chaos, Prime Minister of Tunisia Mohammed Ghannouchi has stated that he is taking power of the country. Recent violence has caused the country to shut down its airspace, lead the United States State Department to advise against visiting the country, and forced a state of emergency to be declared.

"I can confirm that the army is at the airport. Armoured vehicles are surrounding the airport," an official source stated. Rumors of attempts to flee by the President’s staff have been reported as well. President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali has authorized the transition according to television reports.

Hamma Hammami, the opposition leader from the Tunisian Workers' Communist Party, has been released after being held by authorities for three days. Yesterday, the Tunisian government declared a countrywide state of emergency after protests throughout the country. All public gatherings have been forbidden and "the police and the army are authorised to fire on any suspect person who has not obeyed orders or fled without the possibility of being stopped", according to a statement released by the government.

Additionally, a 12-hour curfew was imposed at 6:00 pm local time (1700 GMT) Friday in response to thousands marching in the capital city before authorities fired tear gas into the crowd.