France, Dec. 20 -- On 17 December 2010, in the city of Sidi Bouzid, a young street vendor named Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire in front of the regional government headquarters after police confiscated his goods.

His actof despair came to symbolise wider anger over the socio-economic situation in Tunisia, and repression by the Zine El Abidine Ben Ali regime.

The popular uprising that followed was dubbed the Jasmine Revolution. This 28-day campaign of civil resistance and demonstrations led to the fall of Ben Ali in January 2011.

Tunisia went on to hold free and democratic elections, and inspire a wider protest movement across the Maghreb and parts of the Middle East known as the Arab Spring.

Fifteen years on, the country is now r...