That day witnessed by the Tunisian people reintroduced questions about the reasons that forced the former president, Zine ElAbidine Ben Ali, to leave his palace, and then his country, like a fugitive.
The story takes place in Tunis, the country’s capital, and in many other Tunisian cities, but its events primarily occur in the ruling authority’s decision-making headquarters: the presidential palace in Carthage, the former president’s residence in Sidi Bou Said, the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Defense, al-Habib Bourguiba avenue in the Capital, the Tunis-Carthage International Airport and the military barracks of Aounia, site of the military airbase, and the governmental palace in El Kasba.
It all began at 8 a.m. on that morning, when the then-president Ben Ali arrived at his office in the presidential Palace of Carthage, with the ministers of interior and defense and the country’s prime minister, Mohammed al-Ghannoushi.
At the same time, a few demonstrators were gathering in Habib Burguiba Avenue in front of the Tunisian Ministry of the Interior, headed by the human rights activist and lawyer Radiya al-Nassrawi, who had been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize and who was demanding the release of her husband, the leader of the communist workers’ party, who was incarcerated in the building housing the Interior ministry.
At around 11 that morning the situation worsened. The then-president was receiving conflicting reports and information that he would not be blamed for considering threatening.
The events reached a climax at around 1 p.m.: the protestors outside the palace now numbered about 70,000, and security was breaking down across the city. Demonstrators had set the police and national guard stations on fire. Then, inmates in the prison in the capital and other cities began to rebel … this all resulted in a near total breakdown of the already strained Tunisian security forces, which had for more than a month been dealing with a taxing situation.
Under these circumstances, Ben Ali president decided to send his wife, his son Mohammed and his daughter Halima to Jeddah to perform Umrah, the pilgrimage to Mecca. And indeed, the presidential chief of protocol urgently started preparing for the trip, since the president was not intending to leave the country at the time. The president’s wife had received a notice from her husband asking her to pack her bags and leave for Jeddah. Concurrently, the security services received conflicting information about a potential helicopter attack on the presidential palace, and an attack from sea.
In the midst of these events, during which the presidential palace was awash in panic and terror, the Tunis-Carthage International Airport, and specifically the VIP lounge, which is used by the most imminent personalities, witnessed a watershed in the story’s events.
Colonel Samir Tarhouni of Tunisia’s anti-terrorism brigade and his team broke into the airport and prevented the Trabelsi Family, Ben Ali’s in laws, from leaving the country. Tarhouni took this initiative without the permission of his superiors in the Ministry of the Interior, so his actions were considered as rebellion.
Meanwhile, the president’s wife arrived at the palace to bid farewell to her husband; however, in the midst of the panic and terror in the palace, the former president suddenly insisted on accompanying them to the military barracks in order to secure their departure. Afterward, the presidential convoy, which consisted of nine cars, one of which was driven by Ben Ali’s wife, Leila, along with his son, arrived at the military barracks in Aounia. The president exited the car, which was parked in front of the presidential plane that was refueling in the hangar.
It was at that precise moment that the president decided to travel to Jeddah with the intention of accompanying his family and then coming back home. The plane took off, escorted by armored cars on the runway.
In the meantime, the news of the president’s departure spread among the security services, especially the presidential guard.
Colonel Sami Sik Salem, in charge of protecting the palace, called the prime minister, Mohammed al-Ghannoushi, and pleaded with him to come to the presidential palace to fill the power void left in the country. Accordingly, the prime minister, as well as the speakers of the parliament and their advisors, arrived at the palace.
A statement was issued decreeing that the prime minister had assumed power as an interim president, in accordance with chapter 56 of the Tunisian constitution. Throughout that night and during the flight to Jeddah, a series of calls were made between the president, the prime minister, the defense minister and the chief of staff of the Tunisian Armed Forces, General Rashid Ammar. Ultimately, in an overnight meeting held in the headquarters of the ministry of Interior, it was decided to bar the president from returning to Tunisia.
Thus, the presidential plane’s pilot was ordered to return home without the president on board.
Among the protagonists who participated in this historical day:
•Zine ElAbidine Ben Ali, President of Tunisia since 1987
•Leila Bin Ali, the president’s wife, who was targeted with her family by the protests because of serious financial corruption widely acknowledged inside and outside Tunisia. Her family’s residences were set on fire and were looted, and her brother, Belhassen Trabelsi, fled by sea to Malta on the same day.
•General Ali Seriati, Presidential Security Chief. He played a pivotal role in the events of the story.
•Ridha Grira, the Tunisian Defense Minister, who played a major role in the events and adopted mysterious stances in several situations.
•General Rashid Ammar, the Chief of Staff of the Tunisian Armed Forces, who was widely popular in Tunisia.
•Mohammed al-Ghannoushi, prime Minister. He assumed the role of interim president for a couple of hours and then handed over power to the speaker of the house of the representatives, in line with chapter 57 of the constitution.
•Lieutenant Samir Tarhouni, Colonel of Tunisia’s anti-terrorism Brigade who broke into the airport, without the permission of his officials, in a bid to detain the president’s family and wife, although the president was in the Carthage palace at the time.
•Colonel Sami Sik Salem, Commander of the Presidential Security Forces, who took the historical decision of calling upon the Prime Minister to take office.
•Mohsen Rahim, the Presidential Chief of Protocol, who organized and prepared Ben Ali’s trip to Jeddah.
•Ghazwa and Sirine Ben Ali, daughters of the former president, who were with him on the January 13 and 14.
There are also minor characters who participated in the events, including:
•The presidential plane’s pilot
•The president’s valet
•Female flight attendants
•The Tunis-Carthage international airport Commander.
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