In addition to the single-issue protests, youth inspired by the mass protest movements elsewhere in the Arab world organised nationwide demonstrations on February 25th to express discontent with political, economic and social conditions. Disaffected young people sent out calls to demonstrate in central squares through social networking websites-such as Twitter and Facebook-and mobile-phone text messages. The protestors' demands were wide-ranging and generally related to grievances such as the lack of jobs and the rising cost of staple items. A common list of demands that has circulated on social networking sites is similar in nature to Mr Dahoud's suicide note, calling for:

• the complete withdrawal of the military from politics;
• a practical separation of powers between the legislative, judicial and executive branches of government;
• strengthened national unity and the establishment of a national agency to eradicate slavery;
• sweeping constitutional amendments, including the reform of the electoral system;
• a public declaration of government officials' assets;
• the abolition of an appointed regional prefect-level administrative post (Haakem); and
• elections, rather than appointments, for director-level civil servants.

The protests were small in scale-comprising a few thousand demonstrators in Nouakchott and a few hundred demonstrators at most in each of the other locations-and passed off relatively peacefully, with few arrests or allegations of police brutality. However, official patience with subsequent protests proved finite on March 8th, when efforts to stage a fourth day of protest were thwarted by the police, who prevented demonstrators from gathering in the main square of Nouakchott, Place des Blocs, on the grounds that the protest lacked proper authorisation. In other towns the security services broke up protests in similar fashion and made arrests. Videos of police brutality circulated on social networking sites. One video showed a protestor in foetal position being beaten by several police officers and then thrown into the back of a police truck. Inevitably, the heavy-handed reaction by the government only served to stoke the anger of the protestors. So far, the protestors have refused to negotiate with the regime, hopeful that they will be able to force concessions from the street. However, the protestors have so far failed to reach a critical mass that would threaten the regime.