Tunisia Crisis || President Threatens A Corruption Attack

In Tunisia, which is slipping into political chaos, President Kais Saied announced after the government was disempowered that he would now crack down on corruption. At a meeting with the UTICA union, however, Saied said there was 

no intention of harming or abusing business people

According to Saied, 460 people stole 13.5 billion dinars (around 4.1 billion euros) from Tunisia. He spoke of "wrong economic decisions" that would have led to major financial problems. If people returned the money, they could reach a "criminal settlement" instead of being "prosecuted and imprisoned," said Saied, a former law professor who won the 2019 election with a campaign against corruption.

On Wednesday, Saied deposed the head of state television, Mohammed al-Dahach, and appointed an interim director, the president's office announced. The Tunisian police have also temporarily arrested two reporters from the New York Times. A spokeswoman for the US newspaper confirmed this on Wednesday.

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One of the two reporters, Massinissa Benlakehal, told the dpa news agency that officials had arrested him while researching and accused him of espionage. He spent two hours in a police station near the capital Tunis. According to the New York Times, Benlakehal, a freelance journalist, and his colleague Vivian Yee are now free. Both are continuing "the important work of reporting on the country's political crisis," the newspaper said.

However, Benlakehal said he was not allowed to continue his research as the police said he did not have permission to do so. The freelance journalist claims to have an official accreditation as a reporter in the country.

Non-governmental organizations are calling for swift action

On Monday, Tunisian police had already stormed the capital office of the Al-Jazeera television station . At least ten armed officers are said to have confiscated phones and other equipment. The popular news channel is funded by the government of Qatar. According to critics, it offers too much space for the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamists. As recently as Tuesday, President Saied promised to preserve freedom of expression and freedom of the press in the country.

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At the same time, the Tunisian judiciary started investigations against the Islamic conservative Ennahdha party, its related party Kalb Tounes (heart of Tunisia) and the Aïch Tounsi movement. It is about the suspicion of "funding from abroad and the acceptance of funds of unknown origin during the 2019 election campaign".

President Saied has been fighting for power with the Ennahda party for months. On Sunday evening, he surprisingly deposed the country's head of government, Hichem Mechichi, suspended the work of parliament for an initial 30 days and imposed a night curfew. Saied stated that he was within the legal framework of the constitution. Critics, on the other hand, speak of a coup.

On Wednesday, influential Tunisian non-governmental organizations issued a joint statement warning against an illegal extension of Saïed's suspension of parliamentary work. The NGOs called on Wednesday for a detailed timetable for the next political steps. The constitutional limit of 30 days for the appointment of a new head of government must be respected.

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The deposed ruling party Ennahdha announced resistance to head of state Kais Saied. This fired other high-ranking government officials.

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