Tunisia’s Foreign Affairs Minister Othmane Jarandi (right) walks with his German counterpart Guido Westerwelle at the Tunis-Carthage International Airport yesterday. Photo: Zoubeir Souissi/Reuters

The secretary general of Tunisia’s ruling Islamist party said yesterday that he favoured a non-partisan cabinet, in what may be a significant concession to the secular opposition after weeks of anti-government unrest.

Tens of thousands rallied in downtown Tunis on Tuesday in an escalation of protests since the July 25 assassination of opposition figure Mohammad Brahmi, the second such killing this year. Radical Islamists were blamed for both attacks.

“We need to form a non-political government to lead the country to elections within six months,” said Hamadi Jebali, the second-ranking leader of the moderate Islamist Ennahda party.

The opposition is angry about the assassinations and has been emboldened by the Egyptian military’s removal of President Mohamed Morsi last month after mass protests against his perceived attempts to entrench Islamist control of the state.

Jebali’s gesture appeared to depart from Ennahda’s standing rejection of opposition demands for the dismissal of Prime Minister Ali Larayedh. But the final word rests with party chairman Rached Ghannouchi, who has not commented.

Jebali also called for the Constituent Assembly to complete drafting a constitution and electoral law in a few weeks to help defuse Tunisia’s worst political crisis since secular autocrat Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali fell to a popular uprising in 2011.

The instability has worsened as jihadi militants step up attacks. Hamma Hammami, a senior figure in the Salvation Front, which groups more than 10 secular opposition parties, said the opposition would only negotiate with Ennahda after the dissolution of the Islamist-led government.

Secularists aim to announce an alternative “salvation government” next week, suggesting little prospect of compromise.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle began a two-day visit to Tunisia yesterday, the first visit of a senior European official since the crisis erupted three weeks ago. Westerwelle will attempt to convince the two camps to begin talks on ending the impasse, which has dealt a severe blow to an already crippled economy. He will meet the president and prime minister, as well as the opposition and the UGTT leader.

We need to form a non-political government to lead the country to elections within six months

Western powers fear that a protracted crisis could tip over into violence, even if Tunisia’s army, unlike Egypt’s, is unlikely to intervene.

Tunisia’s armed forces do not have a large, lucrative stake in the economy and have not traditionally intervened in politics. Few observers expect Tunisia’s military to step in to resolve the current crisis.