Tunisia Ennahda Party Spokesman Arrested

Ennahda spokesman Abdelfattah Taghouti. (Social media)
Ennahda spokesman Abdelfattah Taghouti. (Social media)
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Tunisia Ennahda Party Spokesman Arrested

Ennahda spokesman Abdelfattah Taghouti. (Social media)
Ennahda spokesman Abdelfattah Taghouti. (Social media)

The spokesman of Tunisia's Ennahda party has been detained, the party said on Wednesday.

Abdelfattah Taghouti was detained by a national guard unit on Tuesday evening, Ennahda said, demanding his immediate release.

Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA) contacted the party but it had no information on the reasons behind the arrest.

Authorities are investigating several leaders from Ennahda, which is the largest party opposing President Kais Saied, over accusations of conspiracy against the state, financial corruption, sending Tunisians to Syria to fight, and terrorism.

The party says that these charges are fabricated and politically motivated.

Among the detainees are Ennahda Secretary-General Ali Laarayedh, who is a former prime minister and minister of the interior, former Minister of Justice Noureddine Bhiri, and former Minister of Agriculture, Mohamed Ben Salem.

Ennahda’s former MP al-Habib al-Loz and Abdul Hamid Al-Jalasi, who resigned from the party, were also arrested.

Investigations also include Rached Ghannouchi, head of the party, who is still free.

In its statement, Ennahda condemned a “campaign of arbitrary arrests aimed at diverting attention from the failings of the regime.”

“Public opinion knows the failure and impotence of the authorities after 20 months of monopolizing power, a period in which our country has sunk further into economic collapse, social misery, and international isolation,” the party stressed.

It further denounced the campaign to silence those who oppose Saied’s policies.



US Defers Removal of Some Lebanese, Citing Israel-Hezbollah Tensions

Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
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US Defers Removal of Some Lebanese, Citing Israel-Hezbollah Tensions

Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)

The United States is deferring the removal of certain Lebanese citizens from the country, President Joe Biden said on Friday, citing humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon amid tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.

The deferred designation, which lasts 18 months, allows Lebanese citizens to remain in the country with the right to work, according to a memorandum Biden sent to the Department of Homeland Security.

"Humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon have significantly deteriorated due to tensions between Hezbollah and Israel," Biden said in the memo.

"While I remain focused on de-escalating the situation and improving humanitarian conditions, many civilians remain in danger; therefore, I am directing the deferral of removal of certain Lebanese nationals who are present in the United States."

Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah have been trading fire since Hezbollah announced a "support front" with Palestinians shortly after its ally Hamas attacked southern Israeli border communities on Oct. 7, triggering Israel's military assault in Gaza.

The fighting in Lebanon has killed more than 100 civilians and more than 300 Hezbollah fighters, according to a Reuters tally, and led to levels of destruction in Lebanese border towns and villages not seen since the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war.

On the Israeli side, 10 Israeli civilians, a foreign agricultural worker and 20 Israeli soldiers have been killed. Tens of thousands have been evacuated from both sides of the border.