Tunisia detains former Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali

TUNIS, Tunisia

Tunisian security forces detained former Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali on Tuesday, according to his family.

"Security forces in civilian clothes raided our home at 8:00 am (7:00 GMT) and arrested him,” Jebali's wife, Wahida Trabelsi, told Anadolu.

She said no reason was provided for his detention.

"Jebali was taken to the National Guard barracks in El-Aouina, in the northern suburbs of the capital, Tunis," she added.

The local Mosaique and Shams FM radio stations confirmed that the former prime minister was detained by security forces in Sousse province, south of Tunis.

There was no comment from the Tunisian authorities on Jebali's arrest.

“Jebali is in critical health condition after conducting a heart surgery,” Trabelsi said.

Jebali, a member of the opposition Ennahda movement, headed the government from December 2011 to February 2013. He also ran in the 2019 presidential elections.

Last year, Jebali and his wife were arrested on charges of "possession of dangerous materials.” They were later released after pressure from human rights groups.

In June 2022, Jebali was also arrested on money laundering charges, according to the Interior Ministry at the time.

Tunisia has been in the throes of a deep political crisis since President Kais Saied ousted the government and dissolved parliament in 2021.

While Saied insists that his measures were meant to "save" the country, critics have accused him of orchestrating a coup.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi in Ankara