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The killing of the left-wing opposition chief sparked unrest within the aftermath of the 2011 rebellion that toppled President Ben Ali.
A court docket in Tunisia has sentenced 4 individuals to loss of life and two to life imprisonment for his or her position within the assassination of opposition chief Chokri Belaid 11 years in the past.
The sentences had been confirmed on Wednesday by the deputy public prosecutor of the anti-terror judicial division. A complete of 23 individuals had been charged in reference to the homicide, with sentences starting from two to 120 years being imposed on different defendants, 5 of whom had been acquitted.
Dozens of Belaid supporters had gathered outdoors the court docket in Tunis since Tuesday night, chanting slogans demanding justice.
They sang “Chokri lives without end” and “we’re loyal to the blood of the martyrs”.
Belaid was shot useless in his automobile outdoors his house on February 6, 2013. The secretary normal of the Democratic Patriots Get together was a fierce critic of the then ruling Islamist get together Ennahdha, claiming it turned a blind eye to violence dedicated by extremists. in opposition to secularists.
His funeral was one of many largest public shows of grief in Tunisia’s historical past, with an estimated a million individuals taking to the streets, sparking mass protests.
Tunisians maintain an indication depicting the late secular opposition chief Chokri Belaid throughout his funeral procession in Tunis’ Jebel Jelloud district on February 8, 2013 (Anis Mili/Reuters)
The killing sparked one of many greatest political crises Tunisia had skilled within the wake of the 2011 rebellion that toppled President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, casting doubt on the independence of the nation’s judiciary and safety forces .
Months later, a second opposition determine, pan-Arab leftist Mohamed Brahimi, was shot underneath comparable circumstances, with ensuing political strain forcing the federal government to resign.
Authorities blamed the killings on Ansar al-Sharia, a Salafist group suspected of hyperlinks to al-Qaeda and designated a terrorist group in August 2013.
Belaid’s household and secular politicians accused Ennahda get together leaders of being behind the killing after they led the federal government.
Ennahda strongly denies any reference to the homicide. “The small print established by judicial circles present clear proof of the Ennahda’s innocence,” it mentioned in a press release on Wednesday.
It added that the decision ought to restore the respect of these victims of false political accusations, particularly Ennahda chief Rached Ghannouchi, who was lately sentenced to 3 years in jail amid a authorities crackdown on the opposition.
Tunisia sentences 4 individuals to loss of life for the 2013 homicide of politician Chokri Belaid | Political information
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