Second opposition killing rattles Tunisia government The second assassination of a Tunisian opposition leader in six months has further shaken an Islamist-dominated government already rattled by the overthrow of Egypt's elected president. But despite calls to bring down the government following the killing on Thursday of leftist party leader Mohamed Brahmi, analysts suggest the government led by Tunisia's moderate Islamist Nahda party and two-centre left groupings may avoid the same fate as the one in Cairo. On Friday, Tunisia's interior minister, Lotfi Ben Jeddou, accused a hardline Islamist militant named Boubacar Hakim as the main suspect in the February 6 assassination of Chokri Belaid and said the same 9mm pistol had been used in Brahmi's killing. That announcement could limit the impact of calls by the opposition and Mr Brahmi's family for mass marches and strikes to bring down the government. Though two opposition parties have called for the government's dissolution, trade unions said any strikes were meant to allow workers to mourn Brahmi, not to paralyse the nation. Few analysts believe the Brahmi killing will herald the downfall of the government. "People are asking at what cost do we have a political upheaval?" said the Tunisia director of an organisation involved in political outreach. If the government falls, how much will it cost in terms of jobs, administrative reform and the constitution? At the same time, to the government's credit, they also came out with declarative statements about actions they're taking, which suggests that the government is learning from their mistakes. Events in Egypt had already prompted authorities to speed up reforms and offer concessions to the opposition. "What happened in Egypt [with the coup] put into question the whole transitional process here," said Abdel Basset Ben Hassan, a Tunisian human rights activist. It is an alarming message to the Tunisian authorities and to the Tunisian political community to be more decisive, and to try to be more aggressive on reforming institutions, laws and drafting the new constitution. Tunisian activists last month launched their own version of Egypt's Tamarrod, or rebellion, movement that led to massive street protests and prompted the Egyptian armed forces to remove Mr Morsi from office. They claim to have gathered more than 870,000 signatures from Tunisians demanding the dissolution of the transitional parliament and the formation of a team of experts to draft a new national charter. But Tamarrod Tunisia has been hurt by internal divisions and defections and, like its Egyptian cousin, lacks a cohesive political programme. Unlike its counterpart in Egypt it has refused to collaborate with opposition parties. Prime minister Ali Larayedh has derided it as a foreign import. Tunisia's post-revolutionary political configuration in any case differs from that of Egypt. While Mr Morsi's Brotherhood and its more conservative Islamist allies dominated the government and appointed hardline Salafis to key posts and governorships, the moderate Islamist Nahda party is part of the "troika," a coalition with two-centre left parties that control the presidency and the chairmanship of the legislature, the National Constituent Assembly. It has also sidelined more conservative Islamists. Unlike Egypt, Tunisia's armed forces do not have a history of dominating and undermining state institutions, and its judiciary has been far less a political tool for those in power. Tunisia's economy has also performed better than Egypt's, expanding 3 per cent in the second quarter of 2013 compared with 2.5 per cent in the first quarter, despite continuing troubles among its European trade partners. Its main stock index did, however, close down 1.7 per cent on Friday. Tunisians share many of the frustration of Egyptians. Remnants from leader Zine el Abidine Ben Ali's deposed regime, grouped together under the party Nidaa Tunis, have gained ground in opinion polls. Elite Tunisians are angered and fearful of the perceived rise in cultural influence of Islamists. And despite Nahda's dismissal of Tamarrod, it has already begun to accede to opposition demands. In the weeks before Brahmi's killing, legislators appeared to have stepped up efforts to finalise a constitution to be put up to a referendum. At least two bloggers held in prison have been released and an appeals court ordered the release of Tunisian rapper Weld El 15, jailed for calling the police dogs in a song. "The government feels they are in trouble," said Karim Benabdallah, a Tunisian blogger. The guys in Nahda are really scared. It's a totally different approach now. Nahda party officials admit events in Egypt have rattled them but say they are less afraid of the liberal and leftist opposition than of the former regime taking control. "We find what is happening in Egypt is very scary, and rejected by all parties," said Amal Azouz, a Nahda party legislator. We are scared that what we call the deep state and the corrupted money will come back. Nahda is in any case under pressure from its own supporters to make good on reform promises, says Mourad Teyeb, founder and president of Maghreb Media Forum, a Tunis think-tank. "If there will be change in Tunisia it will come from Nahda supporters," he said. Any failure to end corruption will lead to big anger from Nahda and troika supporters.