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EU, Tunisia Sign 'Strategic' Deal On Migration, Economy

European Commission chief Ursula Von der Leyen shakes hands with Tunisian President Kais Saied after announcing a strategic deal with Tunis on economic development and irregular migration - AFP
European Commission chief Ursula Von der Leyen shakes hands with Tunisian President Kais Saied after announcing a strategic deal with Tunis on economic development and irregular migration - AFP
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EU, Tunisia Sign 'Strategic' Deal On Migration, Economy

European Commission chief Ursula Von der Leyen shakes hands with Tunisian President Kais Saied after announcing a strategic deal with Tunis on economic development and irregular migration - AFP
European Commission chief Ursula Von der Leyen shakes hands with Tunisian President Kais Saied after announcing a strategic deal with Tunis on economic development and irregular migration - AFP

The European Union and Tunisia on Sunday signed a memorandum of understanding for a "strategic and comprehensive partnership" on irregular migration, economic development and renewable energy.

The deal, which includes financial assistance, came as Tunisia has been under fire over its treatment of migrants since February, after President Kais Saied accused "hordes" of migrants from sub-Saharan African countries of a "plot" to change the country's demographic makeup.

The cash-strapped North African country, a key route for migrants trying to make their way to Europe, has since seen a rise in racially motivated attacks.

Tensions came to a head after a Tunisian man was killed on July 3 in an clash between locals and migrants in the city of Sfax.

Speaking at the Tunisian presidential palace, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Sunday's accord aims to "invest in shared prosperity".

"We need an effective cooperation, more than ever" on migration, von der Leyen said, announcing greater cooperation against "networks of smugglers and traffickers" and in search and rescue operations, AFP reported.

She was accompanied by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte, who were all in Tunisia in June for talks on ways to curb irregular migration.

Tunisia lies about 130 kilometres (80 miles) from the Italian island of Lampedusa, and has long been a departure point for migrants risking perilous sea journeys on makeshift boats in hopes of reaching Europe.

The International Organization for Migration has said 2,406 migrants died or disappeared in the Mediterranean in 2022, while at least 1,166 deaths or disappearance were recorded in the first half of 2023.

Meloni on Sunday welcomed "a new and important step to deal with the migration crisis", and invited Saied to an international conference on migration on July 23.

Rutte said both the European Union and "the Tunisian people" stand to benefit from the agreement, noting that the EU is Tunisia's biggest trading partner.

The deal also covers financial aid to schools in Tunisia and renewable energy initiatives.

Saied meanwhile called for a "collective agreement on inhuman immigration and (forced) displacements of people by criminal networks".

He insisted that Tunisia "gave the migrants everything it can offer with unlimited generosity".

Von der Leyen said the EU remains "ready to support Tunisia" and provide the funds "as soon as the necessary conditions are met".

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Arab World

Al-Qusayr: Freed from the Nightmare of the Syrian Regime and Hezbollah

Destruction in Al-Qusayr (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Destruction in Al-Qusayr (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Al-Qusayr: Freed from the Nightmare of the Syrian Regime and Hezbollah

Destruction in Al-Qusayr (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Destruction in Al-Qusayr (Asharq Al-Awsat)

At the Shanshar crossroads on the Homs-Damascus highway, there once stood one of the largest checkpoints operated jointly by the former Syrian regime’s forces. Supervised by the Fourth Division’s Security Office and Military Intelligence, the checkpoint is now abandoned. The heavily armed personnel who instilled fear, extorted money, and monitored every movement for over 12 years are gone, leaving a lasting impression of oppression, according to residents of rural Homs.
Makram, a resident of Al-Qusayr, described its removal as liberation from “a terrifying nightmare called the Shanshar checkpoint—a symbol of terror and humiliation.” Over the years, hundreds of young men were detained at the checkpoint, which lies 10 kilometers from Al-Qusayr and 15 kilometers from Homs.
The regime’s collapse last month brought down all checkpoints isolating Al-Qusayr, erected since Hezbollah took control of the town in 2012 to use it as a gateway for expanding its influence.
Fahima Mikhail, 85, expressed her relief: “Finally, Al-Qusayr is free from Hezbollah and Bashar. We have rid ourselves of a heavy nightmare.” Fahima, who was displaced between 2012 and 2015, recalled returning to a town devoid of its original inhabitants. “When we came back, we didn’t find our neighbors, friends, or relatives. The faces were all strangers who treated us like unwelcome guests,” she said.
She also recalled the horror of Israeli airstrikes targeting Al-Qusayr’s industrial zone, sometimes hitting areas near schools during class hours. “Hezbollah brought destruction to us,” she remarked.
Speaking about the regime’s checkpoints, Fahima said the locals endured humiliation and deprivation. “They impoverished the people, starved them, and imposed taxes on everything. Even if a poor man smuggled a liter of cooking oil from Lebanon to feed his children, they extorted him. Bread was obtained through humiliation, and we were deprived of electricity and water. The Orontes River’s waters were given by Bashar to hashish farmers who uprooted apricot and apple trees to plant narcotics instead.”
Having witnessed the French Mandate and every war in Syria, Fahima declared that Bashar al-Assad’s era was “the harshest.” She concluded: “Thank God, He didn’t disappoint us. They all fell in one day, and their chapter was closed. The real people of Al-Qusayr have returned—those we know, and who know us.”
Amid the devastation, a family returning from Lebanon unloaded household items near a house with cracked walls and missing doors and windows. The mother said: “We wanted to come back as soon as Al-Qusayr was liberated, but we waited 20 days because we feared crossing the border without proper papers.” Despite their home being “70 percent destroyed,” she said it was still better than a refugee tent.
Her 11-year-old daughter, Rahaf Mansour, expressed happiness despite the destruction. With rubble from Israeli airstrikes surrounding them, Rahaf said: “We’ve returned to our homeland, and now I can go to school and learn. In Lebanon, I didn’t have papers and was denied an education along with my siblings.”
Passersby greeted the family warmly, congratulating them on their “safety and victory.” “They recognized us by our faces,” the mother explained, sparing them the indignity of proving their identity.
Local estimates indicate that over 700 families have returned to Al-Qusayr from refugee camps in Lebanon and Idlib since the fall of the Assad regime. Some found their homes destroyed and moved into partially damaged houses, while others occupied homes abandoned by former regime loyalists. Many set up tents near the ruins of their homes.
A local security officer, speaking anonymously, confirmed that some Shiite families and regime loyalists who fled after Assad’s fall have also returned to Al-Qusayr. While tensions have arisen due to past grievances, efforts are underway to mediate disputes and maintain stability in the town.