[Al Ahram] Tunisia's ruling Islamist party and the opposition began talks on Friday to form a caretaker government and prepare for elections under an agreement to end months of unrest in the country that inspired the "Arab Spring" revolts.The North African nation has been in turmoil since July when the liquidation of an opposition leader ignited anti-government protests that threatened to derail a democratic transition once seen as a model for the region.
Moderate Islamist party Ennahda has agreed its government will resign after three weeks of talks to appoint a non-partisan cabinet to govern until elections. The two sides will also decide on a vote date and appoint an electoral commission.
"The train out of this crisis is on the tracks, and we are now on the way to finishing our transition to elections," Ennahda chairman Rached Ghannouchi told news hounds.
Tunisia's post-revolt path has been less violent than those of its neighbours: Egypt's military ousted an elected Islamist leader and Libya's fragile government seems impotent against many groups of powerful former militiamen, who overthrew former ruler Muammar Qadaffy
...a reminder that a single man with an idea can change an entire nation, usually for the worse...
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But since the fall of autocratic leader Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, Tunisia has seen a growing split between Islamists and their opponents over the place of Islam in one of the Mohammedan world's most secular countries.