Protests erupt in Tunisia after police kill young man in 'cigarettes raid'

Tunisians took to the streets of the capital city after police shot and killed a young man under suspicion that he was smuggling illegal goods.

Mohsen Zeyani, 23, was shot during a raid on a car carrying cigarettes in the Passage district of Tunis. He died in hospital shortly after on Wednesday evening.

Warning!!! ⚠️
Tunisia Customs officer shoots and kills a man in Passage, Tunis.
They alleged the man was a "smuggler" who didn't stop.
The video shows the officer fleeing the scene after having fatally shot the man.
The area was filled with bystanders...#PoliceBrutality pic.twitter.com/p5RhclT6FG

— Souhail Khmira (@SKhmira) September 7, 2022

Protests over Zeyani's killing took place in multiple neighbourhoods in the capital, including Al-Intilaqah, Al-Tadamon and Bab Al-Jazeera.

Ayman, a resident of Al-Tadamon neighbourhood, told The New Arab's Arabic-language service Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that young people clashed with security forces after the killing with anger over rising police brutality in Tunisia on the increase.

The Charles Nicole Hospital, where Zeyani was taken for treatment, said his friends and family gathered outside the hospital with locals angry about the killing.

The customs service said in a statement that one of its security forces fired "warning shots into the air and at the tires" of the car after a "crowd of smugglers" threw projectiles at police, but a passenger was shot in the head.

In response, Tunisia's public prosecutor on Thursday ordered an investigation into Zeyani's death.