Debate in Tunisia over Continued House Arrest of Officials

Tunisian President Kais Saied. (Reuters)
Tunisian President Kais Saied. (Reuters)
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Debate in Tunisia over Continued House Arrest of Officials

Tunisian President Kais Saied. (Reuters)
Tunisian President Kais Saied. (Reuters)

The Tunisian League for Human Rights (LTDH) has requested the government to clarify the situation of officials who have been banned from traveling and are under house arrest.

The league said it received several complaints related to the human rights situation in the country, especially after President Kais Saied’s extraordinary moves on July 25.

LTDH chief Jamel Msallam said he submitted a request to the interior ministry to discuss this major human rights issue and identify the reasons behind the decisions taken against several businessmen, government employees and other figures.

However, Msallam said he didn’t receive a reply, describing the decisions as “arbitrary.”

His statements sparked mixed reactions among Tunisians and sharp debate about the continued travel ban against some officials.

Imad al-Ghabri, spokesperson of the Tunis Administrative Court, said 15 of those under house arrest, by order of the interim interior minister Saied appointed, had appealed the decision before the court.

The verdict should be issued in less than a month, he told Asharq Al-Awsat, adding that they were included in the judicial emergency list.

MP Mabrouk Karsheed revealed that the travel ban is being implemented at Tunis-Carthage International Airport.



Hezbollah Chief Says It Reviewed Truce Proposal, Ceasefire in Israel’s Hands

 Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem delivers a speech from an unknown location, November 20, 2024 in this still image from video. Reuters TV/Al-Manar TV via Reuters
Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem delivers a speech from an unknown location, November 20, 2024 in this still image from video. Reuters TV/Al-Manar TV via Reuters
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Hezbollah Chief Says It Reviewed Truce Proposal, Ceasefire in Israel’s Hands

 Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem delivers a speech from an unknown location, November 20, 2024 in this still image from video. Reuters TV/Al-Manar TV via Reuters
Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem delivers a speech from an unknown location, November 20, 2024 in this still image from video. Reuters TV/Al-Manar TV via Reuters

Hezbollah chief Sheikh Naim Qassem said in a televised speech aired on Wednesday that his group had reviewed and given feedback on a US-drafted ceasefire proposal to end fighting with Israel, and that a halt to hostilities was now in Israel's hands.

Qassem made his comments in a pre-recorded address aired a few hours after US envoy Amos Hochstein said he would head to Israel to try to close a deal on a truce, after two days of meetings with Lebanese officials including two sit-downs with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally.

Qassem said his Iran-backed group had seen the draft US deal and provided feedback.

"These comments were presented to the US envoy and they were discussed with him in detail," Qassem said. "The comments we presented show that we approve this track of indirect negotiations through Speaker Berri."

But he rejected the notion that Israel would be able to keep striking Hezbollah even after a truce is reached, saying that Israel should not be allowed to breach Lebanon's sovereignty.

Qassem said a deal now depended on Israel's response and the "seriousness" of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - and that Hezbollah would keep negotiating and fighting at the same time.

Specifically, he said any strikes on central Beirut would be met with Hezbollah fire onto Tel Aviv. Hezbollah launched missiles at Tel Aviv on Monday, after deadly Israeli bombardments hit the heart of Beirut on both Sunday and Monday.

Israel's year-long battle with Hezbollah in Lebanon has killed more than 3,500 people, the vast majority of them in the last two months, and left much of the country's south, east and the southern suburbs of Beirut in ruins.

After a ceasefire takes effect, Hezbollah would help rebuild Lebanon alongside the Lebanese state and remain a player in Lebanon's political scene, Qassem said, with an "effective" role in electing a president. Political divides in Lebanon have kept the post vacant for more than two years.