Souab, a well-known attorney and president opponent, gets detained by Tunisia

Human rights organizations are worried that a crackdown on dissent may continue after Tunisian police arrested Ahmed Souab, a well-known attorney and ardent opponent of the nation’s ruler, on Monday, lawyers told Reuters.

Souab is one of several attorneys representing opposition leaders who were found guilty of conspiracy and sentenced to long prison terms on Saturday.

Souab harshly criticized the judge and the trial on Friday, claiming that the judiciary had been totally wrecked and that it was a farce.

According to Samir Dilou, one of Souab’s attorneys, “it appears he was detained because of his critical remarks on the trial on Friday.” The detention was confirmed by two additional attorneys.

Following a trial intended to solidify President Kais Saied’s autocratic control, political parties rejected the rulings, claiming they were retaliatory.

Since he dissolved parliament in 2021 and started making decisions by decree, rights organizations claim Saied has had complete authority over the judiciary. In 2022, he dismissed scores of judges and disbanded the independent Supreme Judicial Council.

“The mass conviction of dissidents…is a disturbing indication of the authorities’ willingness to go ahead with its crackdown on peaceful dissent,” Amnesty International, a human rights organization, stated.

Prominent figures from the Islamist Ennahda party, Saied’s primary rival party, were among those found guilty.

Noureddine Bhiri, the vice president of Ennahda, was sentenced to 43 years in prison, and Said Ferjani and Sahbi Atig, two prominent party officials, were each given 13 years.

Businessman Kamel Ltaif was given the longest punishment, 66 years, while opposition leader Khyam Turki was given a 48-year sentence.

According to authorities, the defendants attempted to overthrow Saied and destabilize the nation. Among them are former intelligence chief Kamel Guizani and former Saied office director Nadia Akacha.
The leaders of the opposition refuted the charges and stated that they were planning a project to bring the dispersed opposition together.

In 2023, Saied claimed that the politicians were “traitors and terrorists” and that the judges who would find them not guilty were complicit in their plot.