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Tunisian Court Sentences Opposition Leaders to 13 to 66 Years in Mass Trial

The unprecedented case against roughly 40 defendants highlights President Kais Saied's consolidation of power and erosion of judicial independence.

FILE - People take part in a protest against president Kais Saied policies, in Tunis, Tunisia, Sunday, March 5, 2023. (AP Photo/Hassene Dridi, File)
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Chaima Issa (3rd-R), Tunisian journalist, human rights defender and member of the main opposition coalition (FSN), arrives in front of the courthouse in Tunis, as the trial of dozens of Tunisian opposition figures resumed on April 11, 2025. Around 40 high-profile defendants activists, politicians, lawyers and media figures are on trial, some of whom have been vocal critics of President Kais Saied. (Photo by FETHI BELAID / AFP) (Photo by FETHI BELAID/AFP via Getty Images)
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Overview

  • A Tunisian court issued prison sentences ranging from 13 to 66 years to opposition leaders, lawyers, and businessmen on charges of conspiring against state security.
  • The trial, which began in March 2025, was criticized by rights groups as politically motivated and emblematic of President Kais Saied’s authoritarian rule since his 2021 power grab.
  • Among the defendants were prominent opposition figures such as Nejib Chebbi of the National Salvation Front, Ghazi Chaouachi, and former intelligence chief Kamel Guizani.
  • Over 20 individuals charged in the case fled Tunisia, and many of the sentences were handed down in absentia, with media and civil society barred from attending the trial.
  • Human rights organizations condemned the proceedings, citing procedural violations and accusing Saied of weaponizing the judiciary to suppress dissent and stifle political opposition.