The criminal chamber specializing in terrorism cases at the Court of First Instance of Tunis has once again postponed the examination of the so-called âsecret apparatusâ case of the Ennahdha movement until March 3.
The hearing on January 5 did not result in a decision, after the defense requested additional time and refused to release an accused. The case involves political leaders and security executives.
The criminal chamber specializing in terrorism cases at the Tunis Court of First Instance decided, Monday, January 5, to postpone until March 3 the examination of the so-called âsecret apparatusâ case of the Ennahdha movement, a highly publicized case which pits defendants â including several political figures and security men â against the Tunisian justice system.
A complex legal case
During this hearing, the defense requested time to better prepare its arguments, an argument widely heard by the competent court. At the same time, the court rejected the request for release submitted for one of the accused currently detained in these proceedings.
The so-called âsecret apparatusâ case involves around thirty defendants, according to the file, including Rached Ghannouchi, Ali LaĂąrayedh and Fathi Baldi, all prosecuted in a state of detention, as well as former security executives appearing free or on the run.
The January 5 hearing saw the appearance of several defendants, while others, including Ghannouchi, refused to appear before the court, marking another step in a series of hearings already marked by postponements and significant procedural tensions.
Defense gets new deadline
The defense lawyers argued for the postponement, highlighting the complex nature of the case and the need for additional time to prepare the arguments and the documents to be produced.
One of the requests also related to the release of a former detained security executive, but it was rejected by the criminal chamber, which considered that the legal conditions for this release were not met at this stage.
