Tunisian state media reported Jan. 14 that a state of emergency has been declared in the country, shortly after Tunisian Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi reported that he had been instructed by President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to dissolve the government. Ben Ali has yet to make an announcement about his own position, but he likely will make another address to the nation today. A new 5 p.m. to 7 a.m. curfew has been implemented, and Tunisian state television reported that the police have been given authorization to use deadly force against protesters once again, contravening promises made by the president one day before to end the violent clampdown on protesters who have been demonstrating across the country for nearly a month. The Tunisian army is reportedly in the process of deploying as well, though troops have currently only been seen near the presidential palace in al-Marsa. Al Arabiya, citing state media, has also reported that the army is taking over responsibility from the police for security. The situation in the capital, Tunis, is rapidly degenerating one day after Ben Ali gave a nationally televised speech to try to quell the unrest. The army was originally deployed to the streets of Tunis on Jan. 11. By Jan. 13, it appeared at times that Ben Ali was about to be overthrown, but initial reactions to the concessions he made in his televised address indicated that while the protesters had not given up, they were pleased with the president's promises. These included a vow to leave office when his term expires in 2014, lift restrictions on Internet freedoms, lower the prices of essential food products, and, perhaps most important, end the use of live ammunition against protesters. The early reports out of Tunisia on Jan. 14 showed that protests were indeed continuing but that they were peaceful in nature. Thousands took to the streets of Tunis, but riot police and the occasional soldier posted to guard strategic locations like Zeitouna Bank and government ministry buildings allowed the demonstrations to take place unimpeded. Things degenerated when pushing and shoving began between protesters and police near the government ministry buildings and the central bank. Police reinforcements arrived on the scene and began shooting tear gas into the crowd; witnesses reported hearing shots fired into the air as well. It appears that Ben Ali's Jan. 13 address only emboldened the protesters to continue pushing for his removal, the opposite effect the president intended in making the concessions. Shortly afterward, Ben Ali ordered Ghannouchi to dissolve the government, and a state of emergency was declared. Ghannouchi also reportedly said Ben Ali ordered him to declare that fresh elections would be held within six months. Ben Ali is desperately trying to distance himself from the state apparatus associated with the violent clampdown that has occurred. This is unlikely to work, however, as there is no real organized political opposition in Tunisia — the protesters are not adherents to any particular party. Ben Ali has marginalized opposing political groups so much that he will struggle to find any that can help him defuse the situation. Thus, Ben Ali's call for new parliamentary elections within six months is unlikely to help him much. In his Jan. 13 speech, Ben Ali issued a veiled accusation at unnamed members of the government for "deceiving" him about the situation in the country, and even adopted the use of the colloquial vernacular, rather than the classical Arabic he normally speaks, in an attempt to portray himself as a man of the people. However, given the present nature of the protests, which seem to have metastasized from an expression of anger about unemployment in the country to a general sense of rage directed toward the regime that has been in power since 1987, it is unlikely the move will quell the unrest. Ben Ali must now worry about potential attempts to unseat him from within the ruling party — but more important, he must watch the moves of the army.