Flag Description

red with a white disk in the center bearing a red crescent nearly encircling a red five-pointed star; resembles the Ottoman flag (red banner with white crescent and star) and recalls Tunisia's history as part of the Ottoman Empire; red represents the blood shed by martyrs in the struggle against oppression, white stands for peace; the crescent and star are traditional symbols of Islam

Background:Rivalry between French and Italian interests in Tunisia culminated in a French invasion in 1881 and the creation of a protectorate. Agitation for independence in the decades following World War I was finally successful in getting the French to recognize Tunisia as an independent state in 1956. The country's first president, Habib BOURGUIBA, established a strict one-party state. He dominated the country for 31 years, repressing Islamic fundamentalism and establishing rights for women unmatched by any other Arab nation. In November 1987, BOURGUIBA was removed from office and replaced by Zine el Abidine BEN ALI in a bloodless coup. Street protests that began in Tunis in December 2010 over high unemployment, corruption, widespread poverty, and high food prices escalated in January 2011, culminating in rioting that led to hundreds of deaths. On 14 January 2011, the same day BEN ALI dismissed the government, he fled the country, and by late January 2011, a "national unity government" was formed. Elections for the new Constituent Assembly were held in late October 2011, and in December, it elected human rights activist Moncef MARZOUKI as interim president. The Assembly began drafting a new constitution in February 2012 and, after several iterations and a months-long political crisis that stalled the transition, ratified the document in January 2014. Presidential and parliamentary elections for a permanent government could be held by the end of 2014.

Total Area: 163,610 sq km

Land Area:155,360 sq km

Water Area:8,250 sq km

Land Boundries Total:1,495 km

Border Countries:Algeria 1,034 km, Libya 461 km

Coastline:1,148 km

Lowest Point:Shatt al Gharsah -17 m

Highest Point:Jebel ech Chambi 1,544 m

Population:10,937,521 (July 2014 est.)

Population Growth Rate:0.92% (2014 est.)

Religion:Muslim (official; Sunni) 99.1%, other (includes Christian, Jewish, Shia Muslim, and Baha'i) 1%

Literacy(%):0.791

Literacy(%) Male:0.874

Literacy(%) Female:71.1% (2010 est.)

Independence Day:20 March 1956 (from France)

National Holiday:Independence Day, 20 March (1956); Revolution and Youth Day, 14 January (2011)

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