Tunisia court sentences four to death for murder of opposition leader Chokri Belaid. On Wednesday, the deputy public prosecutor of the anti-terror judicial division confirmed the sentences. A total of 23 individuals were charged in connection with the murder.
Other defendants received sentences ranging from two to 120 years, while five were acquitted.
Since Tuesday night, dozens of Belaid supporters had gathered near the court in Tunis, chanting slogans calling for justice.
They chanted “Chokri is always alive” and “we are loyal to the blood of the martyrs”.
Belaid was assassinated in his car outside his home on February 6, 2013.
As the secretary-general of the Democratic Patriots Party, he vehemently criticised the then-ruling Islamist party Ennahdha, accusing it of turning a blind eye to violence perpetrated by extremists against secularists.
Tunisians hold a placard with an image of the late secular opposition leader, Chokri Belaid during his funeral procession in the Jebel Jelloud district in Tunis, on February 8, 2013. [Credits: Anis Mili/Reuters]His funeral marked one of the largest public demonstrations of grief in Tunisian history, with an estimated one million people flooding the streets, sparking widespread protests.
The assassination sparked one of the most significant political crises Tunisia had faced since the 2011 uprising that ousted President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
It raised concerns about the independence of the country’s judiciary and security forces.
Months later, another opposition figure, pan-Arab leftist Mohamed Brahimi, was similarly assassinated.
The political pressure resulting from these events ultimately led to the resignation of the government.
The authorities attributed the killings to Ansar al-Sharia, a Salafist group suspected of ties to al-Qaeda.
Ansar al-Sharia was designated as a terrorist organisation in August 2013.
Beginning with Belaid’s family and secularist politicians, accusations surfaced against Ennahda party leaders, alleging their involvement in the assassination while they held government positions.
Ennahda staunchly refutes these claims, asserting its innocence based on details concluded by judicial circles.
Furthermore, it emphasised that the verdict should reinstate respect for individuals who have been falsely targeted by political accusations, particularly highlighting the case of Ennahda’s leader, Rached Ghannouchi.
Ghannouchi was recently sentenced to three years in prison as part of a government crackdown on the opposition.
YOU MAY ALSO READ: Homeland security raids homes linked to Hip-Hop Mogul Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs in Los Angeles, Miami