political opponent Rached Ghannouchi sentenced to one year in prison

Rached Ghannouchi, leader of the Tunisian Islamo-conservative movement Ennahdha arrested in April, was sentenced Monday to one year in prison for “apology for terrorism”, his lawyer Monia Bouali told Reuters.

Rached Ghannouchi, 81, the main opponent of President Kais Saied, was arrested on April 17 and placed under a warrant following statements in which he said that Tunisia would be threatened with a “civil war” if the parties of the left or those from political Islam like Ennahdha, were eliminated there.

Fine of 1,000 dinars

But his conviction on Monday is linked to another case in which he was heard in February by the counter-terrorism judicial center before being released. His summons followed a complaint filed by a police union which accuses him of inciting Tunisians to kill each other, because of remarks made in early 2022, during the funeral of a leader of Ennahdha. He then claimed that the deceased “did not fear rulers or tyrants”.

In addition to the one-year prison sentence, Rached Ghannouchi was sentenced to a fine of 1,000 dinars (300 euros), according to local media. The opponent, President Saied’s pet peeve, was also heard in November 2022 by a judge from the counter-terrorism judicial center for a case related to the alleged dispatch of jihadists to Syria and Iraq. Rached Ghannouchi is the most famous opponent arrested since the coup by President Kais Saied who took full power in July 2021.