Trial of Tunisian opposition leaders postponed

The trial of prominent opposition figures in Tunisia who have been accused of conspiring against the state was postponed on Tuesday until April 11 by the judge, who declined to release those held in custody.

The Tunisian political opposition say the charges are fabricated and a symbol of President Kais Saied's authoritarian rule. Protesters gathered at the courthouse on Tuesday in support of the accused.

Rights groups say the trial shows that Saied now has full control over the judiciary. He dissolved the elected parliament in 2021 and began ruling by decree before later dissolving the independent Supreme Judicial Council.

Forty people, including high-profile politicians, businessmen and journalists, are being prosecuted in the case, including more than 20 who have fled abroad.

Politicians arrested in 2023 include Ghazi Chaouachi, Issam Chebbi, Jawahar Ben Mbrak, Abdelhamid Jlassi and Khyam Turki. The former presidential chief of staff, Nadia Akacha, and former head of intelligence, Kamel Guizani, both of whom are abroad, are also among the accused.

During the hearing, families of the detainees protested outside, holding pictures of their loved ones.

"This is one of the darkest injustices in Tunisia's history," said Bassam Trifi, the head of the Tunisian human rights league.

Saied said in 2023 the politicians were "traitors and terrorists" and that judges who acquit them would be considered their accomplices.

The opposition leaders accuse Saied of staging a coup in 2021 and say the case is fabricated to stifle the opposition and establish a one-man, repressive rule.

They say they were preparing an initiative aimed at uniting the fragmented opposition to face the democratic setback in the cradle of the Arab Spring uprisings.

Chaima Issa, a senior official in the Salvation Front, the main opposition coalition, was among those set to appear before the judge in the trial's first session.

"This trial is unjust and a disgrace to the authorities. It is a purely political case that has included all political leaders," Issa told Reuters before the hearing.

"Our charge is that we oppose the regime. I will continue the struggle at any cost," she added.

Most of the leaders of political parties in Tunisia are in prison, including Abir Moussi, leader of the Free Constitutional Party, and Rached Ghannouchi, the head of Ennahda party, two of Saied's most prominent opponents.

The government says there is democracy in Tunisia and Saied says he will not be a dictator, but that what he calls a corrupt elite must be held accountable.