Amnesty International slams Tunisia's military trial against journalist for anti-Saied comments

Tunisian authorities should immediately release Salah Attia, a detained journalist on trial before a military court over anti-Saied comments, Amnesty International said on Monday.

"Journalists should never have to fear reprisals from authorities for their reporting, no matter how critical, embarrassing, or otherwise displeasing for authorities that reporting might be," wrote Amna Guellali, Amnesty International's Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa.

On 11 June, security officers arrested Attia, founder and editor-in-chief of local independent news website Al-Ray al-Jadid, at a coffee shop in Tunis.

They questioned him about his source for a statement he made in an interview on the Qatari news channel of Al-Jazeera as a guest on a news show a day prior. 

During his guest appearance on the Al-Jazeera broadcast on 10 June, Attia said that President Saied asked the army to close the offices of the general Tunisian Union of Labour, Tunisia's largest labour union but the army refused to do so and had informed the union. The union has denied this claim.

Attia said that the army also refused a request by Saied to place opponent political leaders under house arrest.

Two days later, the Military Court of First Instance opened an investigation against Attia for "inciting armed violence", "accusing a public official of illegal acts without proof", "denigrating the army", and "harming or disturbing others through telecommunications networks". 

A military judge ordered him placed in detention, where he has since remained.

At the opening of Attia's trial on 26 July, the judge dropped the charge of inciting armed violence, which mandates the death penalty, but kept the other three charges.

Attia will face the military court today, 16 August, and could face up to seven years in prison if found guilty.

On 20 July, Attia launched a hunger strike to protest his prosecution in a military court. He ended it on 6 August after he fainted and was transferred to the prison's hospital, according to Attia's daughter and news reports.

Amnesty International said that Tunisia's military courts do not fulfil the requirement of independence under international human rights law since the president has the final word on appointments of judges and prosecutors in the military justice system.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has also demanded the immediate and unconditional release of the arrested journalist.

"Salah Attia's arrest and prosecution in a military court is yet another example of how President Kais Saied's regime is undermining freedom of the press in Tunisia," wrote Sherif Mansour, CPJ Middle East and North Africa Program Coordinator.

Salah Attia is the latest victim of a series of crackdowns on President Saied's opponents. He is the second journalist and at least the 12th civilian to be prosecuted by a military court since Saied's power grab last year.

In the aftermath of "Saied's coup", Tunisia closed TV and radio stations critical of the leader and had opponents arrested.

Last month, Rached Ghannouchi, Tunisia's main opposition leader, was summoned for money laundering allegations that his Ennahda party rejected as a political ploy. Ghannouchi was allowed to return home after a court hearing.

Activists warn of Saied's tightening grip around all executive powers, including judiciary one, after passing a new constitution last month.

Saied's controversial text allows him to present draft laws, have sole responsibility for proposing treaties and drafting state budgets, appoint or sack government ministers and appoint judges.

The document also stipulates that the president would be the head of the armed forces and can appoint judges, who were banned from striking.

Tunisia's opposition continues to call for the annulment of Saied's draft, passed on 25 July in a poorly attended referendum due to a widespread boycott.