Tunisian migrant advocate held in first “terrorism” probe
A Tunisian migrant advocate is in custody and his case is being handled by anti-terror investigators, the head of a rights group said on November 16th according to the Arab News via AFP.
Tunisia is one of the main departure points for migrant boats crossing the Mediterranean to get to Europe.
Tunisian of Chadian origin Abdallah Said was questioned along with the secretary general and treasurer of his group Children of the Medenine Moon, according to spokesman for the Tunisian Forum for Social and Economic Rights (FTDES) Romdhane Ben Amor.
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He described as “a dangerous signal” the transfer of the case to anti-terror investigators “because it’s the first time authorities have used this against associations specializing in migration issues.” Two officers of a bank handling the group’s accounts were also detained, he added.
Ben Amor called Said’s detention part of “a new wave of even tougher repression” against migrant activists following an earlier crackdown in May. “It’s a message to all those working in solidarity with the migrants,” he said.
Back in May, president Kais Saied lashed out at groups that defend the rights of migrants, calling their leaders “traitors and mercenaries.” he claimed that Tunisia must not become “a country of transit” for migrants and asylum seekers.
La Presse, a newspaper close to the government, reported that “five activists operating on behalf of an association in Medenine were in custody in order to be referred to anti-terrorism investigators.”
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It said the group is suspected of receiving foreign funds “to assist sub-Saharan migrants to enter illegally onto Tunisian soil.”
AFP, The New Arab
