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Ousted Tunisian President Ben Ali buried in Saudi Arabia

21 September 2019 23:06 (UTC +04:00)

Former Tunisian President Zine Abidine Ben Ali, who was ousted as a result of popular unrest in 2011, has been buried in the Saudi city of Medina, Al-Watan newspaper reported.

Ben Ali was residing in Saudi Arabia in exile for eight years. He died on 19 September aged 83 in a hospital in the city of Jeddah, where he was undergoing treatment, APA reports quoting sputniknews.

Media give conflicting reports as to whether the former president's family asked Tunisia for permission to bury him at home.

Ben Ali, who ruled over the North African nation for 23 years, was toppled as a result of a three-week revolution that occurred between December 2010 and January 2011. The unrest claimed the lives of 80 people, as the police took up arms against people, protesting against poor living conditions, corruption and unemployment.

The former president subsequently fled to Saudi Arabia. A Tunisian court sentenced him to 35 years in prison, and a military tribunal changed the sentence to life imprisonment for killing demonstrators during protests.