Top opposition leader Abir Moussi is given a 12-year sentence by Tunisia

Abir Moussi, a well-known opposition member, was sentenced to 12 years in prison by a Tunisian court on Friday, according to her attorney. Human rights organizations claim this is another step in solidifying President Kais Saied’s one-man rule.

According to Moussi’s attorney Nafaa Laribi, “the ruling is unjust and is not a judicial decision but a politically motivated order,” she told Reuters.

The leader of the Free Constitutional Party, Moussi, has been incarcerated since 2023 after police detained her at the entrance to the presidential palace on suspicion of assault with the intent to provoke disruption. Critics claim that this was a part of a crackdown on opposition leaders.

She denied the accusations and vowed to keep opposing what she described as “abuse, torture, and political and moral violence,” claiming that she was only using her right to critique and lawful resistance.

Amid mounting concerns that Saied is intensifying a crackdown on his adversaries, including journalists, activists, civil society organizations, and opposition leaders, Moussi is one of dozens of well-known politicians presently incarcerated.

Numerous opposition leaders, businesspeople, and attorneys were sentenced to up to 45 years in prison by an appeals court last month on allegations of plotting to overthrow Saied.

Opponents and rights organizations claim that since Saied closed the elected parliament in 2021, the judiciary’s independence has been eroded. He dismissed dozens of judges and disbanded the Supreme Judicial Council in 2022, actions that rights activists and opposition parties denounced as a coup.

Saied claims he is purging Tunisia of “traitors” and denies becoming a tyrant or utilizing the legal system against his opponents.