Rage at Ruling Class Drives Tunisian Rioters

Angry rioters in Tunisia were egged on by new WikiLeaks cables describing their president's nepotism: "Seemingly half of the Tunisian business community can claim a Ben Ali connection through marriage," an American ambassador wrote in one cable two years ago. The protesters have a particular distaste for Ali's wife, who was a hairdresser without much education before her marriage, but is now known for her conspicuous consumption. Ali already announced that he would not run for re-election in 2014, but people have continued to fill the streets, promising to avenge two protesters who were killed earlier. "I am telling you I understand you, yes, I understand you," a rattled Ali said in a television address Thursday. "And I decided: total freedom for the media with all its channels and no shutting down Internet sites and rejecting any form of monitoring of it." Some Tunisians were grateful for the assurances, but others said the president's words were more empty promises.