عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Karoui’s Arrest Threatens Coalition Supporting Tunisian Govt

Nabil Karoui (AP)
Nabil Karoui (AP)
TT
TT

Karoui’s Arrest Threatens Coalition Supporting Tunisian Govt

Nabil Karoui (AP)
Nabil Karoui (AP)

The arrest of the leader of the Heart of Tunisia party has raised many questions on the extent to which Hichem Mechichi’s government will last.

This comes in light of concerns from the dissociation of the tripartite parliamentary front, which consists of Ennahda, Heart of Tunisia, and al-Karama coalition.

Nabil Karoui, Ennahda Movement’s main ally, was rearrested on Thursday over money laundering and tax evasion.

Opposition parties said on Friday that the front’s loss of Heart of Tunisia will definitely affect Mechichi’s government, and thus the fate of Ennahda’s Head and Parliament Speaker Rached Ghannouchi.

Several observers of Tunisia’s political affairs have wondered about the timing of Karoui’s arrest, which came only one day after President Kais Saied received the former secretary-general of the Democratic Current, Mohamed Abbou.

Abbou is one of the most political figures that faced corruption and based their political rhetoric during the latest parliamentary and presidential elections on this matter.

Ennahda and its leader have been facing the opposition democratic bloc (38 deputies).

The bloc consists of Abbou’s Democratic Current, and Zuhair al-Maghzawi,’s People's Movement party, which announced a sit-in at the parliament headquarters two weeks ago demanding Ghannouchi to issue a statement condemning violence and hate rhetoric in parliament.

Head of Tunisia’s opposition Free Destourian Party Abir Moussa (17 deputies) has been leading a revolution to defeat the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood.

She accused Ennahda of serving as a cover for extremism and not fighting against violence.

Meanwhile, Saied decided to extend the state of emergency throughout Tunisia starting Saturday until June 23, 2021.

His decision came a few days after Abbou called for army deployment to control the growing popular protests.

Heart of Tunisia’s political bureau called on the party’s parliamentary bloc and all its members to remain calm and sober, continue their mission, assume the responsibility entrusted to them by voters, work to complete the party’s program, abide by its pledges and respect the state institutions, the republican system, and the constitution.

It, however, accused some political parties of resorting to judicial prosecutions against party leaders instead of political competition based on programs and ideas during this electoral period.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

MSF Suspends Operations at Key Hospital in Sudan's Capital

FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
TT
TT

MSF Suspends Operations at Key Hospital in Sudan's Capital

FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)

Medical aid agency MSF said on Friday it has been forced to suspend its activities at one of the few remaining hospitals in southern Khartoum due to repeated attacks, cutting off yet another lifeline for those who remain in the Sudanese capital.
War has been raging in Sudan since April 2023, sparked by a power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule, triggering the world's largest displacement and hunger crisis.
The hospital, which lies in territory controlled by the RSF, helped treat the victims of frequent airstrikes by the Sudanese Armed Forces, as well as hundreds of malnourished women and children in an area where two neighborhoods have been judged at risk of famine, reported Reuters.
"In the 20 months MSF teams have worked alongside hospital staff and volunteers, Bashair Hospital has experienced repeated incidents of armed fighters entering the hospital with weapons and threatening medical staff, often demanding fighters be treated before other patients," MSF said in a statement.
"Despite extensive engagements with all stakeholders, these attacks have continued in recent months. MSF has now taken the very difficult decision to suspend all medical activities in the hospital."
The fighting in Sudan has cut off up to 80% of hospitals in conflict areas, where millions who cannot afford to escape the violence remain. Civilians face frequent air and artillery fire and hunger as supplies are blocked by both warring parties and prices skyrocket.
Medical facilities, including MSF-supported ones that have suspended operations, have frequently come under attack by RSF soldiers demanding treatment or looting supplies. Bashair Hospital has served more than 25,000 people, MSF said, including 9,000 hurt by blasts, gunshot wounds, and other violence.
"Sometimes dozens of people arrived at the hospital at the same time after shelling or airstrikes on residential areas and markets," MSF said in the statement, citing an incident on Sunday where an airstrike one kilometer away drove 50 people to the emergency room, 12 of them already dead.