Four arrested in Tunisia anti-corruption drive

Four people, including prominent businessmen, have been arrested in Tunisia on suspicion of corruption and financing a wave of protests in the North African country, a senior official said on Wednesday.

The official, on condition of anonymity, told AFP that businessmen Chafik Jarraya, Yassine Chennoufi and Nejib Ben Ismail along with customs officer Ridha Ayari were arrested on Tuesday "under the state of emergency" in force in Tunisia since November 2015.

"They are implicated in affairs of corruption and suspected of plotting against state security through incitement and alleged financing of the protest movements in Tataouine and other regions," he said.

A young man, Anouar Sakrafi, died of injuries suffered on Monday when he was run over by a national guard vehicle during clashes with security forces at an oil and gas plant in southern Tunisia, the scene of long-running protests over unemployment.

Six years since the 2011 uprising that toppled autocrat Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, Tunisia's neglected periphery has been rocked by protests over social and labour issues.

Security forces on Monday fired tear gas at protesters who were trying to storm the El Kamour facility in the desert region of Tataouine, local radio said.

The health ministry said 50 people were treated in hospital after suffering from broken bones or the effects of tear gas during clashes with security forces in both El Kamour and Tataouine.

Authorities said around 20 members of the security forces were wounded. 

Two protests were also held in the capital Tunis, with demonstrators echoing the rallying cry of Tataouine residents and chanting: "We won't give up!"

President Beji Caid Essebsi vowed earlier this month that the army would protect key economic installations from disruption by protests.

Government spokesman Iyed Dahmani insisted on Tuesday that Tunisia was a "democratic regime".

"In all democracies, there is no other solution: apply the law and dialogue with the protesters," he told Shems FM radio.

But daily newspaper La Presse warned that "the anger of the protesters [could] multiply like a snowball."

It said the government must tackle the issue, which "makes Tunisians feel that nothing has changed since January 14, 2011" - the day Ben Ali fled the country he had dominated for more than two decades.

"Otherwise, the worst is to be feared."