Interim President Fouad Mebazza, sworn in on January 15, asked Prime Minister Mohammed Ghannouchi to form a coalition government, which will reportedly include some opposition parties.
Opposition leaders, including Najib Chebbi and Mustafa Ben Jaafar, have told news agencies that they were contacted by the prime minister.
"Mr. Ghannouchi proposed that our party participate in the formation of a government of national unity that would be open to democratic forces, which means our party and two others," Chebbi told French media.
Chebbi said he demanded parliamentary elections be held within six or seven months.
Another Tunisian opposition leader, the exiled head of the Islamist Party, Rached Ghannouchi, has told reporters he is planning to return home within weeks.
Under the Tunisian Constitution, presidential elections must be held within two months.
Tanks On The Streets
In the meantime, government troops and tanks are patrolling streets in the capital Tunis to restore order and stop chaos and looting in the city. A nighttime curfew has been imposed in the capital.
Some family members of the ousted president, Zin el-Abidine
Ben Ali, who ruled the country since 1987, fled to Saudi Arabia on January 14 as the antigovernment protests intensified.
The unprecedented demonstrations initially broke out in mid-December with protesters complaining about unemployment, corruption, and economic hardship. Dozens were killed in the protests when government troops cracked down on protesters.
Western leaders, including French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel, have called on Tunisia to hold free and fair elections. Merkel said the EU would support a "true democracy" in Tunisia.
White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said Ben Ali's departure could give the Tunisian people a say in how they are governed.
Arab Reaction
Tunisian events are being closely watched in the rest of the Arab world. Facebook, Twitter, and blogs were flooded with messages of support and congratulations to the Tunisian people.
Some opposition politicians in the Arab world have predicted the antigovernment street protests that led to the ouster of the autocratic president could set an example in the region and embolden others.
"The revolt of the Tunisian people against tyranny led to the escape of the biggest tyrant and enemy of freedom and one of the allies of [former Iraqi dictator] Saddam Hussein," al-Saadun told the AFP news agency.
Waleed al-Tabtabai, another opposition lawmaker in Kuwait, has been quoted as saying "All regimes that oppress their peoples and fight Arab and Islamic identity will meet the same fate."
A small protest continued on January 16 outside the Tunisian Embassy in Cairo. Protesters drew parallels between Egypt and neighboring Tunisia saying both countries suffer from corruption, poverty, and lack of freedom under their long-ruling autocratic presidents. Riot police were present in huge numbers. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has been ruling the country for three decades.
Activists in Bahrain were denied official permission to hold a similar rally outside the Tunisian Embassy in the Gulf nation.
Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi, another long-serving ruler in the region, criticized events in Tunisia, saying he was "pained" by the development.
"Tunisia now lives in fear," Gaddafi said. "Families could be raided and slaughtered in their bedrooms and the citizens in the street killed as if it was the Bolshevik or the American Revolution."
The turmoil in Tunisia has prompted many foreigners to flee the North African country, a popular holiday destination for many. The country is known for its Mediterranean beach resorts and is considered a relatively affordable tourist destination.
The United States has advised its citizens against nonessential travel to the country.
written by Farangis Najibullah and based on agency reports
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