(Washington D.C., June 4, 2026) — In response to a Tunisian court sentencing Rached Ghannouchi, former Speaker of Parliament and leader of the opposition Ennahda Party, to life in prison plus 30 years on politically motivated charges, DAWN issued the following statement.
"A Tunisian court just sentenced an 84-year-old respected leader and advocate for democracy whose health is deteriorating to die in prison for the crime of leading the opposition to the dictatorship of Kais Saied," said Raed Jarrar, DAWN's advocacy director. "The conviction should be vacated and authorities should immediately and unconditionally release Rached Ghannouchi and all other political prisoners jailed for refusing to bow to Saied's rule."
"This sentencing of Ghannouchi is part of the regime's desperate strategy to fabricate cases and bury its most prominent critics to deflect from failed governance and a failing economy," said Isabelle Hayslip, DAWN's advocacy manager. "Tunisia's allies, including the U.S. and E.U., should end their support for the Saied regime. Every dollar and every euro sent makes them complicit in dismantling the last remnants of Tunisian democracy."
Background:
On June 3, 2026, the terrorism chamber of the Tunis Court of First Instance sentenced Ghannouchi to life imprisonment plus 30 years in the so-called "secret apparatus" case, which involved 25 defendants and centered on unsubstantiated allegations that the Ennahdha party operated a clandestine security wing. Former Prime Minister Ali Laarayedh received 42 years in the same case. Ghannouchi has been imprisoned since April 2023 and has now been prosecuted in at least 11 separate cases, with accumulated sentences exceeding 56 years before this ruling. His lawyers have previously said he will not appeal the rulings, citing the complete absence of fair trial guarantees.
The charges that authorities have brought against Ghannouchi are baseless, as DAWN has documented. His interrogations have focused not on any cognizable crime but on his political activities, party leadership, and public statements, including a funeral eulogy in which he praised the deceased for not fearing tyrants. In one of the cases against him, for which he received a 22 year sentence, prosecutors cited his position as head of the Ennahdha party as the only "evidence" against him. Across the cases, authorities have carried out mass trials in which defendants were barred from appearing in person. They also relied on an anonymous "secret witness," who later recanted most of his allegations, and have prosecuted the defendants' own defense lawyers. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the International Commission of Jurists, and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, among others, have documented how the proceedings have stripped defendants of basic due process.
Ghannouchi was hospitalized in April 2026 following a sharp decline in his health.
The persecution of Ghannouchi is part of President Saied's sweeping crackdown on dissent since his July 25, 2021 constitutional coup, when he suspended parliament and began ruling by decree. DAWN has called since the coup for ending support for the Saied regime.
