By Yosra Ouanes

TUNIS

Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi on Wednesday announced the extension of a countrywide state of emergency for another four months.

“Following consultations with Prime Minister Yusuf al-Shahid and Parliament Speaker Mohamed al-Nasser, President Essebsi has decided to extend the state of emergency for four additional months, effective as of Thursday,” according to a statement issued by the president’s office.

A temporary state of emergency was first imposed in Tunisia following the country’s 2011 popular uprising, which ended the regime of longstanding president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

A second state of emergency was imposed in late 2015 after a terrorist attack in capital Tunis left dozens dead, including security personnel.

The state of emergency -- which has been renewed several times since then -- invests Tunisia’s interior minister with exceptional powers, allowing him to impose curfews, ban large assemblies, and censor the media without judicial approval, among other things.