Tunisia authorities arrest 240 after protests around country

Tunisian authorities arrested 240 people, mostly teenagers, after violent clashes with police in several cities overnight and further protests in at least three towns on Sunday, the Interior Ministry said.

Tunisian authorities arrested 240 people, mostly teenagers, after violent clashes with police in several cities overnight and further protests in at least three towns on Sunday, the Interior Ministry said. A decade on from a revolution against poverty, corruption and injustice, Tunisia has progressed towards democracy but its economic problems have worsened, with the country on the verge of bankruptcy and public services in a dire situation.

The protesters made no clear demands in demonstrations - which authorities described as riots - in at least 10 cities around the country. Internal Security Forces spokesman Walid Hkima said riot police had arrested 242 people, mostly teenagers and children who vandalised property and tried to rob shops and banks.

The protests pose a challenge for the government of Hicham Mechichi, who has reshuffled his cabinet amid an ongoing battle for political influence. Rural central and southern regions of the country remain flashpoints for rioting. Witnesses told Reuters that protests were held on Sunday in the central towns of Sbeitla and Kasserine, where police chased the protesters and fired tear gas.

In Jelma town in the governorate of Sidi Bouzid, police dispersed youths who blocked roads and burned tires to protest against their marginalisation and poverty. (Reporting By Tarek Amara; Editing by Hugh Lawson)