Mohamed Bouazizi Mohamed Bouazizi Tarek el-Tayeb Mohamed Bouazizi (; 29 March 1984 – 4 January 2011) was a Tunisian street vendor who set himself on fire on 17 December 2010, which became a catalyst for the Tunisian Revolution and the wider Arab Spring against autocratic regimes. His self-immolation was in response to the confiscation of his wares and the harassment and humiliation inflicted on him by a municipal official and her aides. Simmering public anger and sporadic violence intensified following Bouazizi's death, leading to the then-president of Tunisia, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to step down on 14 January 2011, after 23
Mohamed Ben Salem Mohamed Ben Salem Mohamed Ben Salem, born on 19 february 1953, is a Tunisian politician. He served from December 2011 to January 2014 as Minister of Agriculture under the Prime Ministers Hamadi Jebali and Ali Laarayedh. He is a member of the Ennahda Movement. In 1987, he was jailed for nine months, and two and a half months between the years 1990 and 1991. He lived in exile in France from 1991 to 2011. During that time, he was involved with the Paris-based Tunisian Solidarity Association. On 20 December 2011, after former President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was deposed,