Free Rached Ghannouchi — Justice for Tunisia
Rached Ghannouchi sentenced to life in prison + 30 years — June 3, 2026 — This is a political persecution. Demand his release now.
Campaign for Justice & Democracy in Tunisia

Free
Rached
Ghannouchi

Scholar. Statesman. Political Prisoner.

Tunisia's most prominent democratic voice has been sentenced to life in prison by a court serving political ends, not justice. An 84-year-old man — once speaker of parliament — is being silenced because he dared to believe in democracy.

Sign the Petition → Read the Truth
Rached Ghannouchi — leader of Ennahdha, former speaker of Tunisia's parliament, political prisoner
Rached Ghannouchi
b. 1941 — Political Prisoner since 2023
Sentence handed down
Life + 30 Years
Tunis Court of First Instance, June 3, 2026
84
Years old — imprisoned since April 2023
Life
Sentence handed down — plus 30 additional years
2011
Led Tunisia's first free post-revolution elections
0
Evidence of wrongdoing — a purely political trial
"The charges were political from the start. This court has not delivered justice — it has delivered an erasure."
— Ennahdha Party, Official Statement, June 2, 2026
Who He Is

A Lifetime Devoted to
Democracy & Islam

Rached Ghannouchi is one of the most important political thinkers in the Muslim world. He co-founded the Ennahdha movement and spent decades in exile under authoritarian rule — returning to Tunisia after the 2011 revolution to help build the Arab world's only functioning democracy.

As speaker of Tunisia's elected parliament, Ghannouchi represented the democratic gains of an entire generation. His work reconciling Islamic values with democratic governance earned him global respect and made him a beacon of hope across the Muslim world.

He is now 84 years old, in deteriorating health, and serving a life sentence — not because of any crime, but because President Kais Saied's regime views independent democratic voices as threats to its absolute power.

1981
Co-founded the Ennahdha movement
Built a broad democratic Islamic political movement from the ground up under authoritarian repression.
1991–2011
20 years in exile
Fled Ben Ali's regime. Continued political and intellectual work from abroad, writing on democracy and Islam.
2011
Returned after the revolution
Ennahdha won Tunisia's first free elections. Ghannouchi helped guide a democratic transition.
2019–2021
Elected Speaker of Parliament
Served as speaker until Saied's 2021 seizure of power dissolved the elected chamber.
April 2023
Arrested at his home
Detained during a Ramadan gathering. Charged with "inciting chaos" — a fabricated pretext.
June 3, 2026
Life sentence + 30 years
Convicted on terrorism charges in a closed trial that his own lawyers called a judicial charade.
The Evidence of Injustice

Eight Reasons This Trial
Cannot Stand

The Ennahdha party has documented, point by point, the complete absence of legal legitimacy behind these convictions. These are not allegations — they are established facts:

01
A Political Case, Not a Judicial One
The case originated from a complaint filed by a rival political party — not by security or judicial authorities. Its foundation is ideological rivalry, not criminal evidence.
02
Previously Tried and Cleared
The main defendant was already tried in 2013 and served a full 8-year sentence. The judiciary at the time found no link to Ennahdha's leadership. The case was resurrected only after the 2021 coup.
03
Secret Trial — No Public Oversight
Defense teams demanded an open, public trial. The court refused and proceeded in closed sessions — raising serious questions about what the court was trying to hide.
04
Ghannouchi Added by Ministerial Order
Ghannouchi's name was not part of the original 2022 case. He was added as a defendant at the direct request of the Ministry of Justice — a blatant political intervention.
05
Witnesses with Motives to Lie
Charges rested on statements from Ansar al-Sharia members — individuals with documented hostility toward Ennahdha who stood to gain pardons for their testimony.
06
Documents Proved the Defense Right
The defense presented official documents showing all relevant materials were handed to the Ministry of Interior in 2013. The court was presented this evidence and proceeded regardless.
07
Plaintiffs Themselves Declared Innocence
In 2018, a lawyer representing the plaintiff families publicly declared Ennahdha innocent of the assassinations. Final court rulings confirmed this. The current prosecution ignores all of it.
08
Health Crisis Deliberately Ignored
In April 2026, Ghannouchi was rushed to hospital from prison after a sharp deterioration in his health. Both opposition groups and human rights organizations called for his release. The state ignored all calls.
Add Your Voice

The World Must
Speak Up Now

Sign our open letter to international democratic governments, human rights organizations, and the United Nations. Every signature matters.

Join thousands of signatories demanding Ghannouchi's immediate release

Demands
Immediate release of Ghannouchi
Release of all political prisoners
Restoration of judicial independence
End to political persecution

© 2026 Free Ghannouchi Campaign — A civil society initiative for justice and democracy in Tunisia.

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