TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — Tunisia's autocratic ruler Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, toppled in 2011, has died in exile in Saudi Arabia, according to his lawyer. He was 83.

Mounir Ben Salha said that Ben Ali died on Thursday in Jeddah and that his body is to be transferred to Mecca, awaiting the family's decision on his burial.

Ben Ali was ousted in 2011 at the start of what became known as the Arab Spring, a movement that saw many autocratic leaders swept from power.

He then fled to Saudi Arabia.