The situation in Tunisia prior to the ousting of former President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali is not comparable with that of any other Arab country, Foreign Ministry official spokesperson Hossam Zaki said on Tuesday. Zaki told reporters that what happened in Tunisia could not easily repeat itself in any other country, as each country has its own political, economic and social circumstances. Zaki attributed the recent developments in Tunisia to special circumstances. Tunisian protesters staged demonstrations over the past four weeks which lead to the ouster of Ben Ali, who fled the country to seek refuge in Saudi Arabia after 23 years in office. Mohamed ElBaradei, head of Egypt's reform movement the National Association for Change (NAC), warned on Monday that the Egyptian regime should allow a peaceful transition of power to avoid the Tunisian scenario repeating itself in Egypt. Sweeping protests against price hikes have been recently staged in several Arab countries including Jordan, Libya, Morocco, Algeria and Oman. Meanwhile, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit ruled out the possibility of Tunisian-style revolutions in other Arab countries and described fears of the uprising spreading as "nonsense."
