Tunisia's Ennahda opposition movement head detained

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Al Mayadeen
18 Apr 2023 00:29
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In a statement, the Ennahda movement called on "all free people to stand united in the face of these oppressive practices, which violate liberties, and honor of opposition activists".

Ennahdha party leader Ghannouchi at a press conference in Tunis on October 6, 2019 (AFP)

Belkacem Hassan of the Ennahda movement confirmed to Al Mayadeen that the head of the party Rashid Ghannouchi and affiliates of his were arrested and taken to an unknown destination after his house was stormed by the security forces.

Al Mayadeen correspondent in Tunisia reported that the purposes for Ghannouchi's arrest are still unknown.

Following Ghannouchi's arrest, the Ennahda Movement in Tunisia issued a statement calling for his "immediate release" and called on authorities to stop oppressing "opposition political activists."

In a statement, the Ennahda movement called on "all free people to stand united in the face of these oppressive practices, which violate liberties, and honor of opposition activists."

Rafik Abdel Salam, the former Tunisian foreign minister and a close friend of Ghannouchi, wrote on Facebook, "The security forces transferred Ghannouchi to the El-Awaina military barracks of the National Guard, north of the capital, Tunis."

Tunisian Interior: The arrest is linked to Ghannouchi's "inflammatory statements".

A source affiliated with the Tunisian Interior Ministry confirmed the news of the arrest, explaining that Ghannouchi "will be subjected to investigations case related to inflammatory [subversive] statements he made."

The source added that the security forces searched Ghannouchi's house and seized everything useful for the investigation, after getting approval from the Public Prosecution.

Back in November, Ghannouchi appeared in court over charges of money laundering and "incitement to violence."

Rached Ghannouchi is the former speaker of the dissolved parliament and head of the Ennahda party which dominated Tunisian politics for a decade until President Kais Saied took power in mid-2021.

The party and its leader have been closely followed by the authorities for subversive measures.