Interim Head of Tunisia’s Ennahda Party on Trial on Charges of Terrorism

 Ennahda’s leader, Rached Ghannouchi (AFP)
Ennahda’s leader, Rached Ghannouchi (AFP)
TT

Interim Head of Tunisia’s Ennahda Party on Trial on Charges of Terrorism

 Ennahda’s leader, Rached Ghannouchi (AFP)
Ennahda’s leader, Rached Ghannouchi (AFP)

The interim head of Tunisia’s Ennahda party, Mondher Ounissi, appeared on Tuesday before a counter-terrorism court after his arrest over "suspicious political alliances".

Ounissi was arrested last month following the publication of audio recordings in which he was accused of concluding suspicious political alliances with a Tunisian businessman and of receiving illegal funds.

Ennahda appointed Ounissi as its acting leader on 26 April following the arrest of Ennahda’s leader, Rached Ghannouchi, earlier this year.

Several party officials close to Ghannouchi are accused of money laundering in relation to foreign funding for Ennahda-linked associations and charities and using the money against the ruling authorities.

The Tunisian Judiciary has labeled the arrested individuals as “terrorists” and claimed they were involved in a plot against the security of the state.

In previous comments, Ounissi said in a video on his Facebook page that the recordings were fabricated. He claimed authorities were looking to paralyze Ennahdha, which planned to hold its 11th congress next October.

In the recordings attributed to Ounissi, the Ennahda interim leader accused some officials of his party of seeking to control Ennahda and receiving illegal funds, thus allowing the Public Prosecution Office to open a larger investigation into the recordings.

On Tuesday, Ennahda Party renewed its demand for the release of imprisoned politicians, describing their cases as a “scandal.”

“We urge the closure of these scandalous files,” the party said in a statement, adding that authorities should stop targeting their opponents and speed up the release of political prisoners, mainly Ghannouchi, and Johar bin Mubarak, who entered a hunger strike two weeks ago.

Bin Mubarak entered a hunger strike on Sept. 25-26, and was later followed by Ghannouchi.

His sister, Dalila Mossadegh, confirmed that her brother is suffering from health problems inside the prison. She said his health has deteriorated lately, which forced the prison authorities to transfer him to the Habib Thamer Hospital in the capital.



UN Rights Chief ‘Gravely Concerned’ by Lebanon Escalation

Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
TT

UN Rights Chief ‘Gravely Concerned’ by Lebanon Escalation

Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)

The UN rights chief on Tuesday voiced concern about the escalation of hostilities in Lebanon, where his office said nearly 100 people had been reported killed by Israeli airstrikes in recent days, including women, children and medics.

Israel has been locked in fighting with Lebanese armed group Hezbollah since Oct. 2023, and fighting has escalated dramatically since late September of this year.

"UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk is gravely concerned by the escalation in Lebanon with at least 97 people reportedly killed in Israeli airstrikes between the 22nd and 24th of November," Jeremy Laurence, a spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights, told a Geneva press briefing.

He said that at least seven paramedics had been reported killed in three Israeli strikes in the south of Lebanon on Nov. 22-23, adding to 226 healthcare worker deaths since Oct. 7, 2023. He did not specify how many of the recent deaths had been verified by UN human rights monitors.

Israel says it targets military capabilities in Lebanon and Gaza and takes steps to mitigate the risk of harm to civilians. It accuses Hezbollah, like Hamas, of hiding among civilians, which they deny.