The day after Ghannouchi sacked key allies of ousted President Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali, there were none of the usual chants and slogans among the hundreds of protesters camped out in front of his offices since Sunday.
Although his culling of Ben Ali associates such as the defense and interior minister had not totally silenced calls for his own head, Ghannouchi seemed to have won breathing space from some of his most powerful critics.
The head of the powerful UGTT union which had refused to endorse the government until there has been a clean break from the Ben Ali era said that he had been acting as an intermediary between the premier and the protesters.
Abdessalam Jrad said that his umbrella union was attempting to persuade the protesters to return to their homes after the formation of a new transitional government on Thursday.
Jrad said the protesters had told him that they wanted to go home
"I told them that before they go they should tell me their demands and nominate five or six of you so that we can go to see the prime minister and explain your demands," he said.
Jrad said that when he called the prime minister to ask whether he was willing to meet the protesters' representatives, he replied: "We are ready."
Ghannouchi on Thursday said he was staying on but replaced five ministers from Ben Ali's last government whose control of key posts had been decried by protesters.
Three former allies of Ben Ali, including Ghannouchi himself, remain.
Kamel Morjane, who announced his resignation shortly before the reshuffle was announced, was replaced as foreign minister by Ahmed Ounais, a Paris-educated career diplomat and former ambassador to Moscow and New Delhi.
Farhat Rajhi, a former chief prosecutor, was appointed as interior minister and Abdelkarim Zebidi, a medical professor, took over defense.
The changes failed to satisfy everyone among the protesters.
"The whole government has to go, especially Ghannouchi," said Khaled Salhi, a 22-year-old student who called the reshuffle just "playing for time."
But Mokhtar Boubakar, a university lecturer, said: "It's a step forward. We have chased away the most symbolic RCD ministers" — a reference to Ben Ali's still-potent Constitutional Democratic Rally party.
Mouldi Jandoubli, a senior official within the UGTT, said the key thing was that the prime minister stick to his earlier pledge to quit after elections are held in around six months.
