After being sentenced to one year in prison at first instance, then to five years on appeal, journalist Khalifa Guesmi has just obtained a dismissal from the Tunis Court of Appeal. This decision marks the epilogue of a trial.
Justice put an end this Monday, June 9, to the case which aroused vivid debates in the media and legal circles. The Criminal Chamber of the Tunis Court of Appeal pronounced a dismissal in favor of Khelifa Guesmi, journalist and correspondent of Mosaic FM in Kairouan, reports the radio today. He was prosecuted for having broadcast, in March 2022, information relating to the dismantling of a terrorist cell in his region.
The journalist then refused to reveal the identity of his sources, which had earned him prosecution on the basis of the anti -terrorist law. In November 2022, the Tunis court of first instance sentenced him to one year in prison. The penalty had been heavily increased at the age of five on appeal in May 2023, arousing a wave of indignation among human rights defenders and journalists’ unions.
Throughout the procedure, Khalifa Guesmi denied having violated the law and has always invoked his professional duty to protect his sources. He had been released in January 2024, after several months of detention, but remained under the threat of a final conviction.
The decision of the criminal chamber of the Tunis Court of Appeal cancels the previous judgments and dismisses all the charges selected against Khelifa Guesmi.
