Today marks the beginning of judgment day for ousted Tunisian dictator Zine al-Abidine ben Ali.
Tunisia's interim government commenced a trial to determine the legal standing of the 23-year former ruler of the North African nation. But Ben Ali was not there.
He left Tunisia for Saudi Arabia on January 14, after the escalation of a popular movement now commonly referred to as The Jasmine Revolution.
The Saudi government has made no movements toward extradition, and the trial was held in absentia.
In February, the Tunisian Anti-Corruption Commission found 27 million dollars in cash at his palace in Sidi Bou Said, a northern suburb of Tunis.
More interesting, perhaps, is that the commission is trying Ben Ali for drug possession.
At Ben Ali's presidential palace in Carthage, a Tunisian town known for Roman its ruins, authorities report that they found a stash of unspecified narcotics, rumored to be hashish. 2 kilograms.
Meanwhile, unemployment among Tunisian youth is reported by various sources to have hovered around 30 percent before the self-immolation of Mohammed Bouazizi and the beginning of the Tunisian revolution that shook Egypt and then the entire Arab world.
The Tunisian Web community's sentiments about Ben Ali haven't changed much since his January 14departure.
This popular home video of Ben Ali visiting the United States in luxury has evoked feelings of hatred from those who remember his regime most intimately.
Ben Ali has denied all charges, saying that he is the victim of political instability and revolutionary fervor.
A protester holds a sign which reads "Wanted for Dictatorship" outside a court on the opening day of the trial in absentia of Tunisia's ousted president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali and his wife Leila, in Tunis June 20, 2011. Ben Ali said on Monday he was tricked into leaving the country six months ago, setting the stage for a revolution which inspired the "Arab Spring" rippling across the regionREUTERSA sign that reads "Wanted for Dictatorship" is stuck on the shirt of a protester inside a courtroom on the opening day of the trial in absentia of Tunisia's ousted president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali and his wife Leila in Tunis June 20, 2011. Ben Ali said on Monday he was tricked into leaving the country six months ago, setting the stage for a revolution which inspired the "Arab Spring" rippling across the region.REUTERSA protester gestures outside a courtroom on the opening day of the trial in absentia of Tunisia's ousted president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali and his wife Leila in Tunis June 20, 2011. Ben Ali said on Monday he was tricked into leaving the country six months ago, setting the stage for a revolution which inspired the "Arab Spring" rippling across the region.REUTERSChahida Guizani (L), a lawyer representing Tunisia's ousted president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali and his wife Leila Trabelsi, holds a document in a courtroom on the opening day of her clients' trial in absentia in Tunis June 20, 2011. Ben Ali said on Monday he was tricked into leaving the country six months ago, setting the stage for a revolution which inspired the "Arab Spring" rippling across the region.REUTERSHoucine Beji (C), a lawyer representing Tunisia's ousted president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali and his wife Leila Trabelsi, gestures as he speaks to a journalist in a courtroom on the opening day of his clients' trial in absentia in Tunis June 20, 2011. Ben Ali said on Monday he was tricked into leaving the country six months ago, setting the stage for a revolution which inspired the "Arab Spring" rippling across the region.REUTERSPresident Barack Obama arrives in Arizona on Wednesday. As he stepped off of Air Force One, he got into a verbal altercation with Gov. Jan Brewer about a passage in her book "Scorpions for Breakfast."ReutersA New York City cab driver has been arrested for allegedly raping a female passenger at knifepoint. He faces charges of rape, roberry, assault, menacing, and sex abuse.DCPIJim Schwartz does not believe his team is 5-0 anymore, and neither does Jim Harbaugh.Reuters
