Tunisian court sentences Ghannouchi to 1 year in prison, financial fine

By Adel Thabeti

TUNIS, Tunisia (AA) - An appeal court in the Tunisian capital Tunis has sentenced the leader of the Ennahda movement, Rached Ghannouchi, to a one-year imprisonment, along with a financial fine in the case known as "glorification of terrorism."

According to the private Radio Mosaique on Tuesday, the court on Monday evening confirmed an initial verdict against Ghannouchi of one year in prison along with a fine of 1,000 Tunisian dinars ($333).

The court also ruled that Ghannouchi be placed under administrative supervision, to make a daily presence before the police, for a period of three years, starting at the end of his one year imprisonment.

While the Ennahda movement is yet to comment on the verdict, the Tunisian authorities usually do not comment on the verdicts.

The case against Ghannouchi was filed by a security unionist accusing him of advocating terrorism during a sermon at a funeral for one of the movement's leaders in early 2023.

Ghannouchi denies accusations against him of glorifying terrorism, stressing that he is sued for his criticism against the country's President Kais Saied.

Tunisia has been in the throes of a deep political crisis that has aggravated the country's economic conditions since 2021, when President Kais Saied ousted the government and dissolved parliament.

Ghannouchi was a speaker of the dissolved assembly in Tunisia.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar