Commercial flights are suspended and everything indicates that the majority of the three million officials and employees of the 159 government agencies accepted the call to strike in what is emerging as a head-on collision between the trade union center and the President of the Republic, Kais Saied.

The general secretary of the UGTT, Noureddine Taboubi, pronounced an impassioned speech hours ago before nearly a thousand workers gathered in front of the group’s headquarters, affirming that “This is a stubborn government that sows discord and spreads false information.”

He added that the test of strength will not stop “until we achieve our goals no matter the cost.”

The protest precedes the start of talks between the government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a rescue plan for the troubled Tunisian economy.

The Tunisian delegation plans to bring to dialogue with the world financial entity an austerity proposal that includes the freezing of salaries in the public sector, the progressive cut of some subsidies and the restructuring of companies in this sphere.

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