A Tunisian opposition leader critical of the Islamist-led government and violence by radical Muslims was shot to death Wednesday, Feb 6, — the first political assassination in post-revolutionary Tunisia, according to The Associated Press.

The killing is likely to heighten tensions in the North African nation whose path from dictatorship to democracy so far has been seen as a model for the Arab world.

Chokri Belaid, a leading member of a leftist alliance of parties known as the Popular Front, was shot as he left his house in the capital, Tunis, the state news agency TAP said. It said he was taken to a nearby medical clinic, where he died.

Belaid, a 48-year-old lawyer, had been a fierce critic of Ennahda, the moderate Islamist party that dominates the government.

More than 1,000 people quickly gathered in the heart of the capital to protest in front of the Interior Ministry, holding the Islamist-dominated government responsible for the slaying.

Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki, who is currently in Strasbourg, France, to address the European Parliament, cancelled his scheduled trip to Cairo for the Organization of the Islamic Conference and will head straight back home.