Tunisia Jails Opposition Leaders In Mass Sentencing Over Alleged State Security Plot

In a sweeping crackdown on political dissent, Tunisia on Friday handed down lengthy prison sentences to several prominent opposition figures accused of plotting against state security, a move critics say is part of President Kais Saied’s ongoing power consolidation.

Among those sentenced were Issam Chebbi and Jawhar Ben Mbarek, leaders of the opposition National Salvation Front coalition, alongside lawyer Ridha Belhaj and activist Chaima Issa. Each received 18-year prison terms, according to their legal team.

The most severe sentence was given to businessman Kamel Eltaief, who was handed a staggering 66 years behind bars.

These individuals are part of a group of 40 people including politicians, business figures, and journalists prosecuted under security and terrorism laws.

However, human rights advocates and international observers have questioned the legitimacy of the charges, describing them as politically motivated and lacking substantial evidence.

President Saied, who dissolved Tunisia’s parliament in 2022 and amended the constitution in 2023 to grant himself expanded powers, was re-elected in 2024 with little opposition after many rivals were either imprisoned or disqualified on what critics called “flimsy” legal grounds.

Observers warn that these sentences mark a deepening of authoritarianism in the country that once sparked the Arab Spring  raising alarm bells about Tunisia’s democratic backsliding under Saied’s rule.