Tunisian opposition leaders begin collective hunger strike to back jailed activist
Senior Tunisian opposition figures, including Rached Ghannouchi, announced on Friday that they will begin a coordinated hunger strike to show solidarity with Jawhar Ben Mbarek, who has reportedly refused food for nine days and is said to be in deteriorating health.
Ben Mbarek, a co-founder of the National Salvation Front — Tunisia's main opposition coalition — has been detained since February 2023. In April he was sentenced to 18 years following a mass trial that convicted him of 'conspiracy against state security' and 'belonging to a terrorist group' — verdicts criticised by rights organisations.
Leaders and members of the opposition Ennahdha and Al Joumhouri parties, as well as relatives of Ben Mbarek, said they would join the protest. Ennahdha leader Rached Ghannouchi, who is himself serving heavy sentences, posted that he had joined the hunger strike to support Ben Mbarek and to 'defend freedoms in the country.'
'Jawhar is in a worrisome condition, and his health is deteriorating,' said Ezzeddine Hazgui, Ben Mbarek's father and a veteran activist, at a press conference in Tunis. Hazgui added that the family would also launch a hunger strike beginning tomorrow.
Issam Chebbi, the centrist leader of Al Joumhouri who is also detained, announced his participation on Friday. Wissam Sghaier, another Al Joumhouri official, said some party members would follow and that the party headquarters in Tunis would serve as a gathering point for those wishing to join the protest.
Relatives and a delegation from the Tunisian League for Human Rights (LTDH) visited Ben Mbarek at Belli Civil Prison, southeast of Tunis, and reported a 'serious deterioration' in his condition. Many people gathered near the prison to demand his release. The LTDH said there had been numerous attempts to persuade Ben Mbarek to suspend the hunger strike, but he refused, saying he would continue until the injustice against him is lifted.
Prison authorities issued a statement on Wednesday denying that any inmate's health had deteriorated because of a hunger strike, without naming Ben Mbarek specifically.
Context: Rights groups have warned of a sharp decline in civil liberties in Tunisia since President Kais Saied's consolidation of power in July 2021. Many critics of the president remain detained, and the Ben Mbarek case has become a focal point for opposition organisers and human rights monitors.
