Former Parliament Speaker Ghannouchi Receives 45-Year Sentence in Case Condemned as Political Purge.
(TUNIS) – A Tunisian appeals court delivered severe prison sentences to 40 prominent opposition figures, business leaders, and journalists on Friday, in a landmark case that critics describe as a sweeping political crackdown by President Kais Saied’s government.
The defendants were convicted on charges of “conspiring against state security,” with sentences ranging from five years to a 45-year term for Rached Ghannouchi, the 82-year-old leader of the Ennahda party and former speaker of parliament, according to the state news agency TAP.
The trial, which began in March, represents one of the most significant mass prosecutions for security offenses in Tunisia’s modern history. Authorities stated that over 20 other co-accused individuals had already fled the country.
The case centers on allegations that the defendants were involved in a plot with foreign entities to undermine the Tunisian state. Opposition parties and human rights groups have consistently denounced the proceedings as politically motivated, aimed at neutralizing dissent after President Saied’s consolidation of power in a 2021 political shutdown.
This verdict is likely to intensify international concern over the state of democracy in Tunisia, the birthplace of the Arab Spring protests, and further deepen political divisions within the nation.
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