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Apr
21
2023
By TAREK AMARA
Judge orders jail for Tunisian opposition leader

Judge orders jail for Tunisian opposition leader

NEWS
 A Tunisian judge ordered opposition leader Rached Ghannouchi to be detained before his trial on charges of plotting against state security, his lawyer said, the latest move on opponents of President Kais Saied. The 81-year-old head of the Islamist Ennahda party was the speaker of the elected parliament, which was shut down in 2021 by Saied when he seized all powers. Ghannouchi, who was arrested on Monday, was ordered detained following an investigation by the judge that lasted eight hours, lawyer Monia Bouali said. No date has been set for any trial or the next hearing. "The issue is related to…
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Apr
11
2022
By The African Mirror
Tunisian president accused of a “failed dictatorship”

Tunisian president accused of a “failed dictatorship”

NEWS
TAREK AMARA TUNISIANS protested against President Kais Saied, accusing him of imposing one-man rule in the North African country after he dissolved parliament last month. A political crisis in the country intensified last month when more than half of the members of parliament held an online session to revoke Saied's decrees. "We are facing a failed dictatorship that is leading the country to an economic disaster. We will continue to protest in the streets until a coup is forced to reverse its decisions," Chaima Issa, an activist, said. Many members of parliament participated in the protest on Sunday, which took…
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Apr
02
2022
By The African Mirror
Tunisian crisis: Police summon opposition leaders

Tunisian crisis: Police summon opposition leaders

NEWS
TAREK AMARA and ANGUS MCDOWALL TUNISIAN anti-terrorism police summoned the country's main opposition figure for questioning on Friday, as a political crisis deepens in the wake of President Kais Saied's move to dissolve parliament and impose one-man rule. Rached Ghannouchi, head of the Islamist Ennahda party and speaker of the dissolved parliament, was summoned to appear later on Friday, his office said, after investigations were opened into other members of the chamber who had defied Saied. Saied demanded that investigations be carried out after members of parliament held an online session on Wednesday and voted to revoke all the emergency…
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Sep
26
2021
By The African Mirror
Mass resignations lands Tunisia in political crisis

Mass resignations lands Tunisia in political crisis

NEWS
TAREK AMARA MORE than 100 prominent officials of Tunisia's Islamist Ennahda party, including lawmakers and former ministers, resigned on Saturday in protest at the leadership's performance, the biggest blow yet to the party which is facing a severe split. Ennahda, the largest party in parliament, has been thrown into crisis by its response to President Kais Saied's sacking of the government and suspension of parliament on July 25, an intervention the opposition called a coup. In a statement, 113 senior officials from the party said they had resigned due to wrong choices by Ennahda's leadership, which had led to its…
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Jul
27
2021
By The African Mirror
Tunisia’s Islamist ‘chameleon’ contests what he calls a coup

Tunisia’s Islamist ‘chameleon’ contests what he calls a coup

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
ANGUS McDOWALL and TAREK AMARA TUNISIA’S Parliament Speaker Rached Ghannouchi has quickly emerged as the main opponent of President Kais Saied's efforts to reshape the country's politics, branding his dismissal of the government as a coup. On Monday morning, hours after Saied -- a political independent -- shut down parliament and deployed soldiers around it Ghannouchi waited outside, demanding to be let in. "I am 80 years old and throughout my life I have fought against volatility," he said. Ghannouchi, head of the moderate Islamist Ennahda party which has played a role in successive coalitions, has come to personify Tunisian…
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Jul
27
2021
By The African Mirror
Reactions to Tunisia’s democratic crisis

Reactions to Tunisia’s democratic crisis

NEWS
TUNISIAN President Kais Saied has sacked the prime minister and froze the activities of parliament, leading his opponents to accuse him of a coup. This is a selection of what significant players in and outside Tunisia, where regional opinion was often split between states that are friendly or hostile to Islamist ideology, had to say. Tunisian President Kais Saïed. Photo source: Wikipedia THE PRESIDENT Saied said his actions were in line with the constitution, a response to "hypocrisy, treachery and robbery of the rights of the people" by the political class and denied conducting a coup. He warned that violent…
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Jul
14
2021
By The African Mirror
Tunisian parliament speaker contracts COVID-19

Tunisian parliament speaker contracts COVID-19

COVID-19
THE speaker of Tunisia's parliament and the leader of the Islamist Ennahda Party, Rached Ghannouchi, has contracted COVID-19, an advisor to Ghannouchi has told Reuters. Ghannouchi, 80, is at home and will work remotely, the advisor said. Ghannouchi, the leader of the biggest party in the parliament, received two doses of an anti-COVID vaccine this year. Tunisia is seeing a significant increase in COVID-19 cases, with intensive care wards almost full, health authorities said, after successfully containing the virus in the first wave last year. In total, Tunisia has recorded more than 500,000 coronavirus cases and about 16,500 deaths.
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Apr
21
2021
By The African Mirror
Tunisia’s political crisis deepens

Tunisia’s political crisis deepens

NEWS
THE biggest party in Tunisia's parliament has publicly criticised President Kais Saied, warning his policies threatened democracy, in an escalation of the country's political crisis. The moderate Islamist Ennahda party accused Saied of "violating the constitution", having a "tendency towards individual rule" and "encroaching on the political system and the powers of the prime minister". It was a response to Saied's comments on Sunday that his constitutional control of the military extended to the internal security forces, part of a wider power struggle between him, parliament and the prime minister. Tunisia has suffered near political stalemate since 2019 elections that…
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Aug
11
2020
By The African Mirror
Tunisia PM-designate to form technocratic govt without parties

Tunisia PM-designate to form technocratic govt without parties

NEWS
TAREK AMARA TUNISIA's prime minister-designate said on Monday he would form a purely technocratic government following wrangling among political parties over the formation of the country's next administration. The decision by Hichem Mechichi will likely put him in confrontation with the moderate Islamist Ennahda Party, the largest political group in parliament, which announced it would oppose the formation of a non-political government. However, the proposal for a government of independent technocrats without political parties will win support from the powerful UGTT trade union and some other parties, including Tahya Tounes and Dustoury el Hor. Mechichi said that the government's focus…
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Jul
31
2020
By The African Mirror
Tunisia’s parliament speaker narrowly survives confidence vote

Tunisia’s parliament speaker narrowly survives confidence vote

NEWS
TUNISIA's parliament speaker narrowly survived a confidence vote on Thursday, but his slim margin of victory may only deepen the country's political divisions after the resignation of the prime minister. Some 97 members of parliament voted against Rached Ghannouchi, veteran leader of the moderate Islamist Ennahda party, falling short of the 109 needed to oust him. However, with Ennahda and the conservative Karama party boycotting the vote to show their opposition to the motion, only 16 MPs gave him formal support. Ghannouchi's narrow margin of victory may indicate that Ennahda will now face fiercer opposition in parliament from parties that…
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