Tunisian Islamist leader Ghannouchi detained amid tensions

A lawyer for the Tunisian Islamist leader Rached Ghannouchi says he has been detained after a police search

Tunisia Islamist Leader (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Influential Tunisian Islamist leader Rached Ghannouchi was detained Monday after a police search, according to his lawyer.

The move against the 81-year-old former parliament speaker comes amid growing social tensions and deepening economic troubles in Tunisia, the birthplace of the Arab Spring pro-democracy movement more than a decade ago.

Ghannouchi, head of the Ennahdha party, is the most prominent critic of Tunisian President Kais Saied.

Ennahdha announced on Twitter that Ghannouchi had been ″taken from his home″ after a police search and said it “condemns this very dangerous development." His lawyer Nejib Chebbi told The Associated Press that Ghannouchi was detained.

The reason for the detention was not made public. Tunisian media reported that Ghannouchi was to be questioned over a video circulating online in which he purportedly warns of civil war.

Ghannouchi has been detained in the past for questioning on suspicion of money laundering and terrorism financing through a charity. He has denied wrongdoing and his party says the accusations are politically driven.

Saied shut down the Ennahdha-led parliament in 2021 and has since moved to consolidate power amid growing public disillusionment with Tunisia’s democracy.