Tunisian court jails politicians, journalists amid criticism

- Authorities arrested employees of Instalingo and grilled journalists, bloggers, businessmen, politicians on charges of 'offending President Kais Saied,' 'conspiring against state security,' 'espionage'

TUNIS/Tunisia

A Tunisian court on Wednesday sentenced 41 people, including opposition leader Rached Ghannouchi and former Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi, as well as journalists and bloggers, prompting criticism from the opposition movement Ennahda and the National Syndicate of Tunisian Journalists as "unjust" and "harsh."

In the "Instalingo" case, the Tunis Court of First Instance sentenced 41 people to prison for terms ranging from five to 54 years. Ghannouchi, the Ennahda movement's leader, has also been sentenced to 22 years in prison.

Ennahda condemned the verdict, calling it an “unjust political trial and part of a broader effort to take revenge and attack the most basic rights and freedoms.”

The movement also said the trial was “a blatant assault on judicial independence and neutrality, as well as a flagrant politicization of its ruling.”

The case began in October 2021, when authorities arrested employees of Instalingo and investigated journalists, bloggers, businessmen, and politicians on charges of "offending President Kais Saied," "conspiring against state security," and "espionage."

Ennahda had denied the charges, saying Instalingo was "a media content company that provided various services, including work on election campaigns in 2019—but not for Ennahda's candidate."

The journalist's association, for its part, expressed "shock" at the "harsh" ruling against journalist Chaza Haj Mubarak, emphasizing that she was "merely performing journalistic work."

The National Syndicate of Tunisian Journalists recalled that a 2023 investigation had cleared her of wrongdoing and announced plans to appeal the verdict.

According to Tunisia's state news agency, the court sentenced Instalingo founder Salem Keheili to 54 years in prison, as well as former Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi and Ghannouchi's son Moaz to 35 years each.

Instalingo’s Director Haitham Keheili received a 28-year jail term, while Ghannouchi's daughter, Soumaya, who is a journalist, received 25 years.

Instalingo Yahia Keheili, Salem's brother, was sentenced to 18 years, while former Interior Ministry spokesman Mhamed Ali El Aroui and Ennahda official Said Ferjani received 13 years.

Some defendants also faced substantial fines, asset seizures, and up to 10-year election bans. Several people were sentenced in absentia, including Haitham Keheili and the children of Ghannouchi, who are still at large.

The Sousse Primary Court in northeastern Tunisia handled the case until late last year, when an investigative judge referred it to the Judicial Pole for Counterterrorism.