CAIRO, Egypt — Salafi Muslims set fire to a police station west of Tunisia’s capital, Tunis, and forcibly shut bars and liquor shops for the second time in a week, according to the Interior Ministry.
“More than 200 Salafi Islamists attacked the police station in Jandouba with Molotov cocktails,” Lotif Hidouri, an officer in the ministry’s press bureau, said Saturday by phone. “Security reinforcements headed to the governorate, where clashes erupted between police and members of the Salafi group.”
Justice Minister Noureddine Bouheri vowed reprisals against Salafis on Monday, a day after they forced nightspots to close in Sidi Bouzid, about 218 miles west of the capital. Salafis have a strict interpretation of Islam and seek to impose its ban on alcohol throughout Tunisia.
While other Islamists have secured a hold on the parliament and the new government, they have resisted the push by Salafis to implement Islamic law in the country. Prime Minister Hamadi Jbeli has said that his government won’t close bars and wine shops, a move that secularists say may harm the vital tourism industry.
Front Section, Pages 6 on 05/27/2012