Contents of the United States diplomatic cables leak (Middle East) by nepotism", referring to a 17 July 2009 cable. The cable stated, "Corruption in the inner circle is growing." Another from 23 June 2008 said "corruption in Tunisia is getting worse". "The New York Times" suggested the cables about corruption were one of the reasons behind the overthrow of president Ben Ali in the 2010–2011 Tunisian protests. According to Robert Godec, the US Ambassador to Tunisia, Zine el Abidine Ben Ali, President of Tunisia, and his government have "lost touch with the Tunisian people". Furthermore, they "tolerate no advice of criticism whether domestic or international". Godec also reports that "[even]
Lina Ben Mhenni Lina Ben Mhenni Lina Ben Mhenni (Arabic: لينا بن مهني) (born May 22, 1983) is a Tunisian Internet activist, blogger and assistant lecturer (i.e. instructor) in linguistics at Tunis University. Lina Ben Mhenni has been awarded the Deutsche Welle International Blog Award and El Mundo's International Journalism Prize Ben Mhenni's blog, "A Tunisian Girl", is written in Arabic, English, and French. During the rule of former Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, Ben Mhenni was one of the few bloggers to blog using her real name rather than adopting a pseudonym to protect her identity. Her blog, as well