Tunisian Gets Life Sentence for Attempted Interior Ministry Infiltration

Police officers in downtown Tunis. Reuters
Police officers in downtown Tunis. Reuters
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Tunisian Gets Life Sentence for Attempted Interior Ministry Infiltration

Police officers in downtown Tunis. Reuters
Police officers in downtown Tunis. Reuters

The criminal chamber specialized in terrorist cases at the Tunis Court of First Instance handed down a life imprisonment sentence on Wednesday to an extremist involved in a 2021 attempt to break into the Tunisian Ministry of Interior, wielding a cleaver.

The convicted individual, in a fully conscious state according to the indictment, deliberately orchestrated the act of terrorism.

Hailing from a city along the Tunisian coast in the central east, the assailant, on the day of the incident, journeyed to the Tunisian capital in a vehicle belonging to a relative.

The vehicle was later abandoned near the "Al-Jalaz" cemetery, two kilometers away from the main street of Tunis.

The assailant then made an attempt to forcibly enter the Ministry of Interior headquarters, brandishing a cleaver at a security patrol responsible for guarding the premises.

Investigations conducted by counter-terrorism units indicated that the suspect spent some time in a local coffee shop before moving. At precisely 4:00 pm, armed with a cleaver, he tried to infiltrate the ministry but security forces shot him in the leg.

The assailant was transported to the hospital for treatment before being subsequently transferred to prison.

The life imprisonment verdict was handed down under Tunisia's Law on Counter-Terrorism enacted in 2015.



Qatar Foreign Ministry: Hamas Political Office in Doha Has Not Been Permanently Closed

A file photo of two Palestinian fighters from the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, participating in a military parade near the border with Israel in central Gaza Strip, July 19, 2023 (Reuters).
A file photo of two Palestinian fighters from the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, participating in a military parade near the border with Israel in central Gaza Strip, July 19, 2023 (Reuters).
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Qatar Foreign Ministry: Hamas Political Office in Doha Has Not Been Permanently Closed

A file photo of two Palestinian fighters from the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, participating in a military parade near the border with Israel in central Gaza Strip, July 19, 2023 (Reuters).
A file photo of two Palestinian fighters from the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, participating in a military parade near the border with Israel in central Gaza Strip, July 19, 2023 (Reuters).

The political office of the Palestinian Hamas group in Doha has not been permanently closed, Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari said on Tuesday.
Al-Ansari said leaders of the Hamas negotiating team were not in Doha, reported Reuters.
Qatar said last week it had told Hamas and Israel that it will suspend efforts to mediate a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal until both show seriousness about resuming talks. Doha also said media reports that it had told Hamas to leave the Gulf Arab country were not accurate.

Qatar, which is home to a major US military base, has hosted Hamas's political leadership since 2012 with Washington's blessing.

During the talks after Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel last year, both Qatari and US officials indicated that the militant group would remain in Doha as long as its presence offered a viable channel of communication.