Paris-Tunis, 2 December 2025. The verdict handed down in the case referred to as "l’affaire du complot contre la sécurité de l’Etat" (in English the "conspiracy against state security") case is a clear example of the Tunisian government’s drift towards authoritarianism. The mass and unfair trial in the first instance against more than 40 prominent figures, opponents, lawyers, journalists, and activists, was seen as a coordinated offensive aimed at crushing all forms of political opposition.
The criminal chamber that hears terrorism cases at the Tunis Court of Appeals handed down exceptionally severe sentences: ranging from 10 to 45 years in detention for defendants in custody, and from five to 35 years for those on bail. Persons tried in absentia had their sentences confirmed or increased, some for terms of up to 43 years, to be served immediately. The court also issued fines and asset confiscation orders.
Activist Chaïma Issa is among the persons tried in absentia; her indictment is a clear indicator of the deeply political nature of the trial. The appeals court increased her sentence to 20 years in prison. Originally, she was sentence to pay a 50,000-dinar fine and serve an18-year prison term. On 29 November, the day after the appeals court handed down their decision, she was arrested in central Tunis while protesting against the government’s increasingly authoritarian stance during a peaceful demonstration. Issa’s speedy arrest, immediately after the appeals court verdict, confirms the repressive nature of the judgement and the use of the judicial system to intimidate dissenting voices.
The rights of the defence were systematically trampled
The defendants, among them political opponents, activists, lawyers, journalists, civil society actors, and prominent figures such as Jaouhar Ben Mbarek, Issam Chebbi, Ghazi Chaouachi, Ridha Belhaj, Khayam Turki, Noureddine Bhiri and Abdelhamid Jelassi, were prosecuted without legal grounds. According to Yosra Frawes, head of the Maghreb and Middle East desk at the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), "this trial has nothing to do with justice; it is entirely political."
Violations of fundamental rights were rife during the trial in the first instance and the appeal: defendants were not allowed to attend the hearings in person, defence counsel were not allowed to present their arguments, the hearings were closed to the public, there was widespread use of videoconferencing, members of the independent press were excluded, and the court refused to postpone the trial despite the serious health condition of some of the defendants, notably Jaouhar Ben Mbarek who had been on a hunger strike for a month.. Moreover, accusations of political interference, "receiving orders", made against the judges undermined entirely the credibility of the proceedings.
Justice manipulated and used to stifle dissent
The appeals court judgement is not a decision made by an independent judiciary. The government manipulates anti-terrorism laws to eliminate opponents and silence criticism. The case itself supports the findings of the FIDH report, From Coup d’État to the Stifling of Rights (2021–2025) that describes how justice is used as a tool for political control, contrary to international legal norms and the fundamental guarantees of the rule of law.
The FIDH reacted to the decision of the appeals court by reaffirming its absolute solidarity with the prisoners of conscience, their families, and everyone fighting to preserve freedoms in Tunisia.
The FIDH calls on the Tunisian authorities to:
– overturn the judgments handed down in this case and in all proceedings where the anti-terrorism law was unduly applied;
- release immediately and unconditionally all persons detained for exercising their fundamental rights, including political opponents, activists, journalists, trade unionists, lawyers, and human rights defenders;
– guarantee the right to a fair trial, the independence of the judiciary, and an end to political interference in judicial proceedings; and
-revive true civic space where criticism, debate, and freedom of association are protected.
The FIDH calls on the European Union, its Member States and Tunisia’s partners to:
– explicitly denounce the judgement in this case and the systematic violations of the right to a fair trial;
-make all forms of political, financial or security support conditional on respect for fundamental rights and the rule of law; and
-actively support human rights defenders, journalists, lawyers, and civil society organisations who come under threat.