Tunisian judge orders detention of prominent lawyer Souab

TUNIS - A Tunisian anti-terrorism judge ordered on Wednesday the detention of prominent lawyer Ahmed Souab, a fierce critic of President Kais Saied, lawyers said, two days after his arrest for comments about the judiciary.

Souab's arrest sparked widespread anger among political parties and civil society groups, which said the move was a dangerous escalation of a crackdown on dissent and marked a further entrenchment of the country's authoritarian regime.

Activists took the streets in protest this week demanding his release, chanting slogans against Saied and demanding an end to the harassment, silencing and imprisonment of critics.

Souab is among the lawyers acting for opposition leaders who received prison sentences on Saturday on conspiracy charges.

Souab strongly criticized the judge and the trial last week, calling the proceedings a farce and saying the judiciary had been destroyed. He also said that "the judges are under pressure, with a knife to their heads".

An anti-terrorism court interpreted the comment as a threat to the judges, but Souab's lawyers said it was a reference to the huge political pressure on judges.

Souab had been detained on "terrorism-related charges" over the comment, a spokesperson for the court said.

Souab is a retired administrative judge and lawyer, and a vocal critic of Saied who has repeatedly said the judiciary had lost its independence.

Souab's lawyers boycotted Wednesday's hearing, after the judge informed them that he had accepted the representation of only four lawyers out of the dozens present to defend him.

Opposition and right groups say Saied has had full control over the judiciary since he dissolved parliament in 2021 and began ruling by decree.

He dissolved the independent Supreme Judicial Council and sacked dozens of judges in 2022. They described the move as a coup.