Holidaymakers return home from tension-filled Tunisia

Tears welled up in Therese Sant’s eyes as she waited at the airport for the flight from Tunis to land so she could see for herself that her fiancé was alright.

“I know he’s fine. We’ve been in constant contact, messaging each other all the time. But I need to see that he’s alright... I haven’t slept for four nights,” she said as she stood in the arrivals lounge at Malta International Airport.

Ms Sant’s fiancé was on holiday in Tunisia when the political tension in the country exploded, leading to violent riots.

Although he was not residing in the area where the riots took place, she could not wait to welcome him back to safe Malta. He was among the few Maltese people who returned early yesterday afternoon on a flight with about 20 passengers.

Maria Zammit and her husband also returned from their 11-day holiday.

“We were scared and eager to come back... We didn’t go out much and stayed cooped up in our hotel... Everything was at a standstill... We did not see the riots but did see things like burning tyres on roads,” Mrs Zammit said as she pushed her luggage through the airport.

The Zammits were able to return to Malta after Tunisia’s airspace and airports were re-opened for civilian flights on Saturday, a day after the airspace was closed when a state of emergency was declared.

A Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman said that, till Saturday, there were about 120 people of Maltese descent, including holidaymakers, in Tunisia. It did not seem like the Maltese were planning to leave the country.

There have been weeks of demonstrations in Tunisia over corruption, unemployment and high food prices. The country’s President, Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, was forced out of office on Friday and fled the country for Saudi Arabia.

The Foreign Ministry has drawn up a contingency plan to evacuate Maltese nationals from Tunisia if the situation in the north African country deteriorates. It issued a travel warning urging people visiting Tunisia, a popular destination with the Maltese, to exercise caution.

Malta’s Ambassador to Tunisia, Vicky-Ann Cremona, said she feared the situation was not going to calm down easily. She said a house belonging to one of the President’s relatives, some 10 doors up the road from her own residence, was set on fire.

The Tunisian Ambassador in Malta, Abderrahman Bel Hadj Ali said he was confident the situation would become calmer day by day and Tunisia would enjoy democracy and freedom.