Tunisian court rejects provisional release of opposition figure on health grounds

The appeal trial of a prominent Tunisian lawyer jailed on anti-terror charges started on Thursday, after the judge rejected the defence's demand for his provisional release on health grounds.

Ahmed Souab's lawyers and relatives said his health condition had become critical since his jailing in April last year as part of what many said was a crackdown on political dissent.

The court rejected his provisional release and postponed the hearing to February 23, his lawyer, Fedi Snene, told AFP.

Souab, also a rights advocate and a former judge, was detained after claiming that judges were under political pressure to hand down hefty sentences last year in a mass trial of critics of President Kais Saied.

He had been a member of the defence team during the high-profile mass trial, and last October he was sentenced to five years in prison in a speedy trial that lasted less than two minutes.

UN Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders Mary Lawlor said on Wednesday Souab had been convicted on "baseless charges" and called for his "immediate release".

Snene rejected accusations against Souab, saying "he should not be in prison".

"He is a well-known man of law, who served for nearly 30 years as a judge before becoming a lawyer," Snene added.

Souab's son, Saeb, told AFP the family had submitted a "substantial medical file" asking the judge for his release pending a verdict.

Saeb said his father suffered a heart attack in 2022 and that his cardiologist had certified that prison conditions could worsen his health.

Souab had accused authorities of putting "a knife to the throat of the judge who was to deliver the verdict" during the mass trial that saw around 40 public figures sentenced to long terms on charges including plotting against the state.

Since Saied's power grab in July 2021, when he dissolved parliament and began ruling by decree, rights groups have warned of a sharp decline in civil liberties in the North African country.