Mohammed Ali

Tunisia is taking a harder line on preaching by ultraconservative Muslim groups, a crackdown that has sparked demonstrations by rock-throwing protesters and ominous warnings of terrorist attacks to come.As it struggles to hunt down al-Qaida linked terrorists in its frontiers, the government has also been trying to rein in salafis emboldened by the fall of the country's repressive dictatorship two years ago. The interior minister said last week that gatherings will require permission, a measure rarely enforced in the past that is an attempt to stop tent meetings springing up around the country to build support for the groups.One of the most vocal of them threatened Monday that if the government cancels its annual conference this weekend — an event attended by 40,000 last year that featured martial arts displays and sword-wielding horsemen — its adherents who have experience in jihad could strike."You are making a foolish mistake because faith cannot be defeated by any force in the world...

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