Tunisia government 'will not quit'

Tunisia's Islamist-led government will not step down despite opposition demands, the prime minister has said. Ali Larayedh said his government would full-fill its mandate and hold elections in December. His comments were in response to anger over the murders of two leading opposition politicians, including the assassination of an MP on Thursday. It is suspected the murder's were carried out by Islamist militants, and both politician's were killed by the same gun. In a televised speech, Mr Larayedh said [as quoted by AFP news agency]: "The government will stay in office.  We are not clinging to power, but we have a duty and a responsibility that we will exercise to the end". Thousands of people have taken to the streets in recent days, demanding the resignation of the government following the killing of Mohammed Brahmi, the leader of a small left-wing party. As the political crisis continued, officials said at least eight soldiers had been killed by gunmen near the Algerian border in what was one of the worst attacks on the countries military in decades. The attack took place in an area where troops have been searching for hide-outs of suspected al-Qaeda linked militants; three days of mourning have been declared for those killed.