Tunisia protests over Brahmi assassination

Police fire tear gas to break up a protest, near the parliament building in Tunis
Police fire tear gas to break up a protest, near the parliament building in Tunis July 27, 2013. Tunisian police fired tear gas in front of parliament on Saturday to disperse secular protesters demanding the dissolution of the assembly and Islamists defending the legitimacy of their rule. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi (TUNISIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) (Reuters)

In Tunisia, even the most bitter disputes have a certain civility. At an ongoing sit-in by rival protesters outside the constituent assembly in Tunis, fiery slogans are offset by singing, and both police and popcorn vendors look on.

The festive atmosphere belies the fact that Tunisia's two main political camps –  the ruling Islamist Ennahda party and its allies and a collection of broadly secularist opposition parties – are locked in a tense, perhaps decisive standoff over the future of Tunisia’s democratic transition. (Christian Science monitor)