Tunisia Riots Take Deadly Turn

The youth-driven uprising in Tunisia that drove out its president of 23-years, strongman Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali is at once a joyful precedent for the Arab world and an ongoing violent struggle. Today, the streets of Tunisia turned violent again, as gangs loyal to the ousted president started random shooting sprees that have at least two people dead. "It is certain the presidential police are behind all this," said a Tunisian analyst. "They still hope to regain power." On the other side, dissidents cheered Ben Ali’s exile by tearing a portrait of him outside the headquarters of his ruling party in the capital, Tunis. Earlier today, the country’s prime minister, who initially grabbed power after Ben Ali left, ceded control to the parliament’s speaker.