Essebsi wins Tunisia presidency

Eighty-eight-year-old veteran politician Beji Caid Essebsi has won Tunisia’s first free presidential election, according to results released on Monday.

The head of the country’s electoral commission said Essebsi took over 55% of the vote, while his opponent, caretaker president and former rights activist Moncef Marzouki, trailed with 44%.

Essebsi, who served under ousted president Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali, dedicated his victory to the “martyrs” of the revolution and said he would represent all Tunisians.

But his critics say his victory is a return of the old guard. and rioting broke out in the city of Hamma, as angry youths demonstrated in the street, shouting “No to the old regime.”