Tunisian prime minister announces resignation

TUNIS - Agence France-Presse

Tunisian Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali speaks as he announces his resignation during a news conference in Tunis on Feb 19. Jebali resigned after failing in an attempt to form a government of technocrats and end a political crisis. REUTERS photo

Tunisian Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali has submitted his resignation to President Moncef Marzouki after failing to form a new government aimed at ending a political crisis.

"I promised and assured [eveyone] that, in the event that my initiative failed, I would resign as head of the government, and that is what I have done," Jebali said in remarks broadcast on television after meeting Marzouki earlier today.

Jebali, whose efforts to form a government of technocrats was rebuffed on Feb. 18 by his own Ennahda party, said he was standing down to "fulfill a promise made to the people."

"This is a big disappointment," he said. "Our people are disillusioned by the political class. We must restore confidence."

Jebali said he had called on his Cabinet to continue to do the "utmost to ensure that the state continues to function." "The failure of my initiative does not mean the failure of Tunisia or the failure of the revolution," he said, referring to the country's uprising two years ago to oust long-time dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

He said he was convinced that a non-political team "is the best way to save the country from wandering off track." He also said it was urgently necessary to set a date for future elections.