There was looting and shooting in the capital, Tunis, after the celebrations marking his flight to Saudi Arabia.Troops are patrolling the city centre and a state of emergency is in force.
The violence came as the Speaker of parliament, Foued Mebazaa, took over as interim president.He said he had asked Prime Minister Mohammed Ghannouchi - who earlier said he was in temporary charge - to form a national unity government.
In a televised address, Mr Mebazaa said all political parties including the opposition would be consulted.
“All Tunisians without exception and exclusion must be associated in the political process,” he said after taking the oath. Under the constitution a new presidential election must be held within 60 days.
Saturday’s deadliest incident appears to have been in the resort of Monastir where a fire swept through a prison, killing at least 42 people.
The identities of the victims and the cause of the fire are still unclear. Reports said inmates had been attempting to escape.
“The whole prison is on fire, the furniture, mattresses, everything,” an eyewitness in the city, about 160km (100 miles) south of Tunis, told Reuters news agency.
In Mahdia, further south, at least five people were killed after soldiers opened fire on prisoners at the town’s jail, a senior official told the Associated Press. The official said the prison director then freed hundreds of other inmates to avoid more bloodshed.
There were reports of violence and escape attempts at several other jails.
In Tunis, soldiers and police exchanged fire with gunmen outside the interior ministry, media reports said.
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