'Political judgement' against the incarcerated leader is condemned by the Tunisian opposition party

 

The one-year jail term given to its leader Rached Ghannouchi was denounced by the Tunisian Islamist-inspired Ennahdha party on Tuesday as a "unjust political verdict."

Following his arrest on April 17, Ghannouchi, a prominent opponent of President Kais Saied, was convicted on Monday on terrorism-related charges.

On the allegations, he had made an appearance in court at the end of February after being accused of calling police officers "tyrants."

The lawsuit was one of many brought by the government against Ghannouchi, whose party held the majority in parliament until Saied disbanded it in July 2021 as part of a coup that gave him the right to rule by decree.

The 81-year-old former parliamentary speaker had warned that removing opposing ideologies like political Islam or the left may spark a "civil war."

Ennahdha issued a statement saying, "We condemn the sentence imposed against Rached Ghannouchi, which we consider an unjust political verdict, and we call for his release."

The statement said that Ghannouchi had a history of opposing "extremism and terrorism in his statements and writings and advocating moderation."

Salsabil Chellali, the head of Human Rights Watch in Tunisia, said the punishment further illustrated how the government uses the anti-terrorism law "to discredit and eradicate opposition."

The arrest of Ghannouchi and the sentence that followed were "both based on public declarations by the leader of Ennahdha," she said.

"Unlawful arrests now punctuate Tunisian political life under Saied's presidency, with executive interference in judicial affairs serving as a background"

Ghannouchi was sentenced to a year in jail as well as a $1,000 ($326) fine.

In November of last year, Ghannouchi appeared in court in relation to claims that his party had aided terrorists' journey to Iraq and Syria.