Tunisia pays families of revolution 'martyrs'

TUNIS — Tunisia took fresh steps Friday to draw a line under the old regime, paying families of victims killed during the revolution as Europe slapped froze the assets of 46 associates of the ousted president.Tunisia's interim government began paying compensation to relatives of those killed during the uprising in Ben Arous, on the outskirts of Tunis: 20,000 dinars (10,300 euros, $14,000) for those killed; 3,000 dinars for the injured.Earlier this week the United Nations Human Rights Council said at least 219 people were killed and 510 wounded in protests that began in mid-December and culminated in the downfall of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali last month.The European Union meanwhile said it had added 46 members of Ben Ali's inner circle on a list designed to freeze their assets, which previously featured only Ben Ali and his wife Leila Trabelsi.Tunisia's former first family and their entourage are suspected of having pocketed much of the country's wealth over the years and of having taken personal stakes in most of the economy.But Switzerland dropped businessman Aziz Miled from the list. His friendship with French Foreign Minister Michele Alliot-Marie triggered a political row in Paris, where some lawmakers have called for her resignation.There were signs that life was returning to normal in Tunisia, with a government decision to shorten the curfew in place for nearly a month.And public employees were expected to fully return to work on Monday.The port of Rades, where 70 percent of the country's trade with the rest of the world is concentrated, was bustling with activity.However, unrest simmered in the country as several hundreds of people rallied late Friday in front of a police station in the central town of Sidi Bouzid, to protest the deaths of two detainees.The bodies, both of which showed burn marks, were brought to a hospital, medical staff said. But the circumstances surrounding their deaths remained unclear.It was in Sidi Bouzid that a young man, Mohamed Bouazizi, died after setting himself o

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