Turkey condoles with Tunisia over president's death

ANKARA-Anadolu Agency

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on July 25 extended his deepest condolences over the death of Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi.

"I wish Allah's mercy upon him and extend my condolences to the brotherly people of Tunisia," Erdogan said in a statement.

He will always be remembered with respect, he added.

Essebsi was a political figure playing a role in Tunisia's path to democracy after the 2011 Jasmine Revolution, a 28-day civil resistance campaign.

Essebsi, Tunisia's first democratically elected president, took office in December 2014 after having served in a variety of key positions in the North African country for several decades, most notably as director of national security, interior minister, defense minister, and foreign minister.

Born in 1926, Essebsi took power in a changed political landscape after Tunisia witnessed a popular revolution known to have sparked the beginning of the Arab Spring uprisings.