Violent protests leave eight dead in Tunisia

Eight people were killed in clashes with police in two provincial towns, in what the government said yesterday were the deadliest incidents yet in an unprecedented wave of unrest.

Witnesses said another three people were killed in clashes in a third town yesterday, but there was no official confirmation of those accounts.

The protests against unemployment and lack of investment have lasted nearly a month. The authorities say the rioting is the work of a minority of extremists. President Ben Ali has said the protests are unacceptable.