On Monday, February 9,2026, Riadh Ben Fadhel, political detainee and General Coordinator of Al Qotb party, appeared before the Court of First Instance, in his first court hearing in the so-called “confiscated properties” case, after more than two years of detention. The court decided to postpone the examination of the case to 26 February 2026, due to a change in the presiding judge and members of the competent chamber, in accordance with a working memorandum issued by the Ministry of Justice.
It’s important to note that Riadh Ben Fadhel was arrested on January 14, 2023, in the Tunis Carthage International airport, when he was coming back to the Tunisian country. He was escorted to El Aouina, before it was decided to place him in custody for five days for investigation at the Bouchoucha detention center, without informing him of any specific or clear charges.
It was occurred that Riadh Ben Fadhel, had previously appeared before the Tunis Court of First Instance in a customs-related case, in which the court sentenced him to four years and six months in prison, along with financial fines amounting to two million Tunisian dinars. by a ruling issued on 2 April 2025 by the chamber specialized in financial corruption cases at the Tunis Court of Appeal, Dismissing the case against him under the settlement.
Intersection Association for Rights and Freedoms insists that this cannot be separated from the broader context of the deterioration of rights and freedoms in Tunisia, where judicial prosecutions with a political background have become a systematic tool to restrict the public space, undermine the right to political participation, and perpetuate an atmosphere of fear and intimidation.
Accordingly, the Intersection Association for Rights and Freedoms renews its call for the immediate and unconditional release of Riadh Ben Fadhel, alongside the cessation of all politically motivated judicial proceedings against him, and an end to the use of the judiciary and preventive detention as means of repression and exclusion of political opponents in Tunisia.
