TUNIS, Tunisia – A Tunisian court has handed a death sentence to a 56-year-old man accused of insulting President Kais Saied and “assaulting state security” through social media posts — a ruling described by rights advocates as shocking and unprecedented.
According to the Tunisian League for Human Rights and the man’s lawyer, Saber Chouchane, a day labourer with limited education, was convicted by a court in Nabeul over Facebook posts deemed critical of the president.
“The judge in the Nabeul court sentenced the man to death over Facebook posts. It is a shocking and unprecedented ruling,” Chouchane’s lawyer, Oussama Bouthalja, told Reuters, adding that an appeal has already been filed.
The Justice Ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
While Tunisian courts occasionally issue death sentences, none have been carried out in more than 30 years, with most converted to long prison terms.
Chouchane’s family expressed disbelief at the ruling.
“We can’t believe it,” his brother, Jamal Chouchane, said by phone. “We are a family suffering from poverty, and now oppression and injustice have been added to poverty.”
The judgment triggered an outpouring of outrage and mockery online, with activists and ordinary citizens denouncing it as a blatant attempt to silence dissent.
Many said it was intended to intimidate critics of President Saied, whose government has faced mounting accusations of authoritarianism.
Since Saied dissolved parliament in 2021 and began ruling by decree, Tunisia — once hailed as the Arab Spring’s lone democratic success story — has faced sustained criticism over its shrinking civic and political space.
Rights groups accuse the president of undermining judicial independence and jailing opponents on politically motivated charges.
Most prominent opposition figures, whom Saied has branded “traitors,” remain in detention.
Human rights advocates have called on Tunisian authorities to overturn the death sentence and safeguard freedom of expression.
