Roughly 15,000 people rallied on Saturday (February 16th) in Tunis to support the Ennahda-led government and against Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali's plans to form a government of technocrats aimed at resolving Tunisia's political crisis, AFP reported.

"Ennahda... will never give up power, as long as it benefits from the confidence of the people and the legitimacy of the ballot," party leader Rachid Ghannouchi told the crowd at the end of the rally.

On Friday evening, Jebali said his consultations with political parties on the new Tunisian government showed "encouraging results" and that progress was made "on all the items discussed". A new meeting was scheduled for Monday to "carry on discussions", he added.

"Time is not important. What is more important is the interest of Tunisia and the search for a way out and a solution for the people and the revolution," he told reporters.