Islamist leader Ghannouchi of Tunisia is imprisoned, and party headquarters are searched

 


According to his attorney, prominent Tunisian Islamist leader Rached Ghannouchi was taken into custody on Monday following a police search.

The action against the 81-year-old former speaker of the house comes as social unrest and economic woes in Tunisia, the country that gave birth to the pro-democracy Arab Spring movement more than 10 years ago, are on the rise.

Kais Saied, the president of Tunisia, is most frequently criticised by Ghannouchi, the leader of the Ennahdha party.

Early on Tuesday, Tunisian police conducted a raid on the main offices of the Islamist Ennahda party and began evacuating everyone inside, according to party insiders who spoke to Reuters.

Riadh Chaibi, a party official, said that the police escorted everyone outside and started searching the headquarters after displaying a court order.

Following a police search, Ennahdha tweeted that Ghannouchi had been "taken from his home," adding that it "condemns this very dangerous development." The Associated Press was informed by his attorney Nejib Chebbi that Ghannouchi was being held.

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