Category: Blog
Libya: Leon: “Our Job is Done”
Leon declared late at night on Monday that UNSMIL’s part of the work was done and that it was up to the Libyan political leaders to accept or reject the final text when they return to a final round of...
Tunisia: 110 Security Members Terminated
The ministry of interior announced last week that 110 security elements were terminated and around 6 of them would stand trial in court. The ministry spokesperson explained that investigation audits of the rank and file of the police, army and...
Tunisia: Ennahdha Weighs in First Act of Defiance of Anti-Terrorism Measures
The ministry of religious affairs made a U-turn on its decision to terminate Ridha Jaouadi, Imam of a mosque in Sfax. Many Imams were fired in the aftermath of the Sousse attacks last summer due to their allegedly extremist discourse....
Tunisia: President Essebsi Compelled to Review Economic Reconciliation Bill
The showdown by the opposition on 11 September in rallies against Essebsi’s proposed economic and reconciliation bill, under consideration in the parliament, seemed to have compelled Caid Essebsi to go back to the drawing board and take into consideration the...
Libya: Leon’s Race against the Clock
After failing to convince the Tripoli-based GNC delegation to attend yet another dialogue round of talks in Morocco in late August, Leon found himself compelled to request a meeting with a larger group of the GNC parliamentarians in Istanbul ahead...
Why does the Algerian regime fear Rachad?
In a recent piece on the detention of Algerian human rights lawyer and opposition figure Rachid Mesli, Robert Fisk asked why Interpol is doing the work of Arab despots. Mesli is the subject of an arrest warrant by the Algerian...
Tensions over the Proposed Law for Economic Reconciliation
President Baji Caid Essebsi’s proposed law for economic and financial reconciliation has stirred up the political and civil society landscape in Tunisia. Maya Jeribi, secretary general of the Al Joumhouri party considered it a “law for reconciliation and corruption laundering”....
Social Consequences of the Security Approach
The Tunisian Labour Organisation (OTT) has called for a sit-in to protest at the ministry of religious affairs’ decision to sack Imams and close down mosques accused of operating outside its oversight. The decision was taken hastily in the wake...