Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to execute Islamic fundamentalists. SISMI's action did not have the consent of René Imbot, head of the French secret service, and the USA allegedly was not informed. According to Martini, the SISMI did not have an operational role in Ben Ali's rise to power, but organised a move to support his new government politically and economically, preventing Tunisia from falling into an open confrontation with fundamentalists, as happened in Algeria in the following years. Ben Ali initially promised a more democratic way of ruling the country than had prevailed under Bourguiba. One of his first acts upon taking office was
Ridha Grira Banque Tuniso-Libyenne. He took on the role of General Secretary of the Government. On January 16, 1992, he was assigned the position of General Secretary of Foreign Affairs Ministry. On April 22, 1999, he was chosen as Minister of State Properties and Land Affairs. On 14 January 2010, he became the Minister of National Defense. After the ousting of the Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali during the revolution of 2011, Ridha Grira was reappointed by Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi to his position within the « national unity government » formed by Mohamed Ghannouchi. This government was strongly opposed