The jailed deputy leader of Tunisia’s opposition Ennahda movement, Noureddine el-Bhiri, was hospitalized after a hunger strike to protest his imprisonment, his group said on Monday.
“Noureddine el-Bhiri was moved from prison to the intensive care unit after an 18-day hunger strike,” Riyadh Chouaibi, an adviser to Ennahda leader Rached Ghannouchi, announced on Facebook.
Bhiri “is facing death again in defense of his basic rights,” Chouaibi added.
He accused Tunisian authorities of “freezing” a lawsuit filed by Bhiri claiming torture during his February 2023 arrest.
Bhiri, a former justice minister, was jailed on charges of “conspiring against state security.”
He had previously been placed under house arrest in December 2021 on terror suspicions, which were overturned but remained under investigation.
Tunisia has seen numerous arrests, including media figures, activists, judges, businessmen, and politicians since February 2023.
President Kais Saied accused some of “plotting against state security,” allegations denied by Ennahda.
The country has faced a deep political crisis since 2021.
