Tunisia orders curfew in restive mining town

Tunisia's official news agency says that authorities have ordered a curfew in a central mining town amid simmering unrest following a bout of deadly clashes between police and protesters.

The TAP news agency said Sunday that the 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew has been imposed on Metlaoui, where clashes two days earlier left two people dead and 20 injured.

The military dispersed protesters and made arrests in lingering unrest Saturday, the latest sign of Tunisia's struggle for restore stability after a revolution that deposed an autocratic leader and sparked uprisings in the Arab world.

The protests began amid rumors that the regional phosphate mining company was secretly recruiting in a specific tribal area - instead of opening its jobs to the entire local population. Authorities have denied the rumors.