Tunisia Upheaval

By Douglas V. Gibbs

The president of Tunisia is on the run, now in Saudi Arabia as his 23 years of authoritarian rule is in the process of being replaced by a Jihadist Islamic upheaval. Widespread rioting has overthrown the nation's leader, showing that as the Islamic jihad gains more strength, the Muslim autocratic leaders are falling like dominoes.

Thousands of protesters have stormed the streets, and security forces have responded with tear gas, and the use of their clubs.

Hoping to quell the violence, Mr. Ben Ali pledged to hold parliamentary elections in six months, and he was even willing to throw in a presidential contest as well.

While the world believes that the Tunisians are standing for their rights by overthrowing a brutal dictator, the vacuum left by Ali will need to be filled, and it is my opinion that Islamic revolutionaries will step in to fill that void.

The world's reaction from the point of view of Muslims has been celebratory.

In the Gaza Strip, hundreds of Islamic Jihad supporters rallied to support the uprising. Activists of the Islamic Jihad held Tunisian flags bearing the words "Revenge against tyranny" during the rally in the heart of Gaza City.

Around 5,000 Tunisians and sympathizers marched through Paris on Saturday, one screaming: "It's the end of 23 years of tyranny."

Italy also saw a gathering of Tunisians supporting the uprising. Germany's Angela Merkel urged Tunisia to introduce "a true democracy" and said the European Union would support it. However, I don't believe a democracy in the style that Merkel imagines is what the revolutionaries are calling for.

Yet another step towards a new radical Islamic caliphate has been taken.

-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary

Shooting on the streets as Tunisia tries to form coalition - Reuters