Tunisian sentenced to death for Facebook posts criticizing the president

A court in Tunisia sentenced to death 56-year-old (according to other sources - he is 41 years old) worker Saber Shoushan for Facebook posts criticizing the country's President Kais Said. This was reported by Reuters with reference to Shushan’s lawyer and local human rights activists.

Shushan was arrested last year. The French publication Businessnews reported that the court rejected terrorism charges, but found Shushan guilty of “insulting the President of the Republic,” “attack with the aim of changing the political system,” and “disseminating false information against an official.” Chooshan had only about 260 followers on Facebook, wrote a lot not only about the Tunisian president, but also about world events, and did not even finish high school.

In 2021, Said stripped the prime minister of his powers and effectively dissolved the Tunisian parliament. The decision was made amid protests in the country related to the state of the Tunisian economy and the spread of coronavirus. Many opposition figures ended up in prison on various charges. Over the past 30 years, death sentences have been handed down several times in Tunisia, but none have been carried out.