Tunisian authorities detained prominent journalist Mohamed Yousfi on Saturday, in a case critics say targets dissent against President Kais Saied.
Yousfi was arrested by police on September 4 as he arrived at Express FM Radio in Tunis to appear on a program, according to Zied Dabbar, head of the National Syndicate of Tunisian Journalists, SNJT. A presenter at the station, Walid Ben Rhouma, said officers told him Yousfi was being taken for questioning but gave no reason at the time.
Hours later, a judge ordered Yousfi held on allegations of illicit enrichment and money laundering, state news agency TAP reported, citing a judicial source.
Yousfi is editor-in-chief of the investigative website Al-Qatiba and has been a vocal critic of Saied’s policies. The SNJT said interrogators questioned him about his journalism and Al-Qatiba’s editorial line, and called the arrest an attack not just on Yousfi but on press freedom and the public’s right to independent media.
Tunisian authorities did not respond to a Reuters request for comment outside office hours.
The detention adds to concerns from rights groups about shrinking space for independent voices in Tunisia. Since Saied suspended parliament in 2021 and later dissolved it to rule by decree, several journalists have been jailed. This year alone, Zied Heni, Mourad Zghidi, and Borhen Bsaies were imprisoned, and Khaoula Boukrim received a four-year sentence in absentia in June.
Free speech expanded after the 2011 uprising that ousted Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. Critics argue Saied’s consolidation of power since 2021 has rolled back those protections and given authorities tools to pursue reporters. Saied maintains he is not a dictator and that freedoms remain guaranteed in Tunisia.
