A Tunisian court has sentenced opposition leader Rached Ghannouchi to 20 years in prison for “plotting against the state,” his lawyer told AFP on Tuesday, increasing his previous sentence by six years.
The 84-year-old Ennahdha party leader has been in detention since 2023 and now faces a total of more than 40 years behind bars across multiple charges.
Ghannouchi and 22 co-defendants were tried last year over allegations including “plotting against state security,” charges his defence has consistently described as politically motivated and fabricated. The appeals court raised his sentence from 14 to 20 years, according to his lawyer, Samir Dilou, who said Ghannouchi would not appeal the ruling due to a lack of guarantees for a fair trial.
Ghannouchi leads the Islamist-inspired Ennahdha party and has long been a vocal critic of President Kais Saied. His detention comes amid a broader crackdown on political opposition in Tunisia, which has seen most of Saied’s opponents either jailed or forced into exile.
Other defendants in the trial include former presidential chief of staff Nadia Akacha and former prime minister Youssef Chahed, who are currently abroad. Charges against the group include “conspiracy against the state’s internal security” and “forming an organisation linked to terrorist crimes.”
The trial also implicated senior Ennahdha figures, including Ghannouchi’s son-in-law Rafik Abdessalem and retired military officer Kamel Bedoui, accused of establishing a “secret security apparatus” for the party.
Tunisia, celebrated as the Arab world’s only democracy following the 2011 Arab Spring, has seen growing concerns from local and international NGOs over a regression in political rights and freedoms since Saied assumed office in 2019.
Last year, a similar trial resulted in up to 45-year sentences for some 40 opposition figures, highlighting the ongoing suppression of political dissent in the country.
