Permo-Mesozoic (pre-Vraconian) tectonic of the southern Tethyan margin in southern Tunisia

At the northern edge of the Saharan platform, the late Permian marine seque nce and the detrital formation of the early-middle Triassic form a palaeoge ographic high from Middle Carnian to Vraconian. From late Carnian to Aptian , marine transgressions alternated with detrital episodes associated with m ajor unconformity outlining regional tectonic events. A detailed analysis o f fault-slip data sets and joint sets allow us to propose the following suc cession of tectonic events in southern Tunisia: (1) a NE-SW trending late P ermian extension, (2) a 160 late to middle Triassic extension, (3) a NNW-SS E trending Middle Carnian compression, and (I) a major N-S extensional even t ranging in age from late Norian to Aptian. These events, mainly extension al are related to the rifling that originated the opening of the Tethyan oc ean.