Tunisian Parties Call For Dissolution of Parliament, Withdrawal of Confidence from Speaker

President Kais Saeid meets with his South Korea's Interior minister on Tuesday. (dpa)
President Kais Saeid meets with his South Korea's Interior minister on Tuesday. (dpa)
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Tunisian Parties Call For Dissolution of Parliament, Withdrawal of Confidence from Speaker

President Kais Saeid meets with his South Korea's Interior minister on Tuesday. (dpa)
President Kais Saeid meets with his South Korea's Interior minister on Tuesday. (dpa)

The Free Destourian Party urged President Kais Saeid to take urgent action to dissolve the parliament and call on lawmakers to sign a petition to withdraw confidence from Speaker Rached Ghannouchi.

On Monday, the parliament office announced that the parliament was going to hold its plenary sessions, in defiance of Saeid's suspension of the legislature.

The parliament said it wanted to meet to address the serious financial, economic, and social crisis in the country.

Head of the Free Destourian Party Abir Moussi said the petition needs the approval of 109 deputies to dissolve parliament and call for early legislative elections.

She added lawmakers would not reject Saeid's invitation if he took a step toward dismissing Ghannouchi, dissolving parliament, and holding the elections.

Moussi filed a judicial complaint to invalidate the decisions of the frozen parliament and stop the plenary sessions scheduled to begin Wednesday.

She warned that going ahead with the meetings would mark a dangerous precedent in the country given the president's order to suspend parliament in July last year.

Saeid had criticized Ghannouchi's call for parliament to convene. Speaking a National Security Council meeting, he stressed that the law must be respected, noting that "the so-called 'virtual meeting' is illegal because the assembly is frozen."

"The State will only recover through an independent judiciary, which is being challenged by those who desperately trying to stage a coup," charged the president.

Saeid stressed that the Tunisian state is not a "puppet" to be toyed with by national and foreign entities.

He warned against attempts to convene the suspended parliament, saying the state's forces and institutions will confront those who want to tamper with the state and push Tunisians to conflict.



Hamas Source to Asharq Al-Awsat: Gaza Ceasefire Agreement Imminent

A Palestinian woman amid the rubble of her home in the Nusseirat camp in central Gaza after an Israeli airstrike. (EPA)
A Palestinian woman amid the rubble of her home in the Nusseirat camp in central Gaza after an Israeli airstrike. (EPA)
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Hamas Source to Asharq Al-Awsat: Gaza Ceasefire Agreement Imminent

A Palestinian woman amid the rubble of her home in the Nusseirat camp in central Gaza after an Israeli airstrike. (EPA)
A Palestinian woman amid the rubble of her home in the Nusseirat camp in central Gaza after an Israeli airstrike. (EPA)

A source within Hamas told Asharq Al-Awsat that a ceasefire agreement in Gaza is expected by the end of this week, unless new complications arise.

The source said “most issues have been settled, and the agreement is close.” Only a few details remain under discussion.

Speaking under the conditions of anonymity, the source said the agreement calls for a ceasefire in the first phase and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from city centers, but not Gaza. Troops will remain partially in the Netzarim and Philadelphi areas. Women and children will be allowed to return to northern Gaza, with men returning later in stages through an agreed process.

The source added that “efforts are being made to include men in the first phase, and talks are ongoing.”

In the first phase, lasting 45 to 60 days, Hamas will release about 30 Israeli prisoners, including both living detainees and bodies, in exchange for a yet-to-be-determined number of Palestinian prisoners, including many serving life sentences.

The agreement also includes handing control of the Rafah crossing to the Palestinian Authority, but not immediately, with Egypt overseeing the process.

Hamas sees its concessions as significant, especially in giving up the demand for a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza in the first phase. However, the source stressed that Hamas has guarantees for this in later stages of the agreement.

The release of the remaining prisoners and the end of hostilities will be discussed during the first phase.

Both Israel and Hamas confirmed major progress on Tuesday.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the deal is “closer than ever” after past obstacles were removed.

Hamas issued a statement saying that, with serious and positive talks ongoing in Doha, a ceasefire and prisoner swap are possible if Israel stops adding new conditions.

Hamas is facing a complicated situation after losing much of its leadership, with regional shifts including the weakening of Hezbollah, the fall of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, and changes in US policy.

Other sources close to Hamas say the group is under intense pressure to make concessions, with the cost of delaying too high.

Like Israel, Hamas wants to reach an agreement before US President Donald Trump takes office next month. An Arab diplomat told The Times of Israel that Hamas is in its weakest position and warned, “The longer they wait, the worse the terms will be.”