Tunisia: judiciary denies calling Libyan official for investigation in terrorism-related case

Judicial sources in Tunisia have denied media and social media reports that the head of the Libyan Government of National Unity, Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, has been summoned for investigation in a terrorism-related case. The sources called on Tunisian media to investigate the accuracy of the information.

“The Public Prosecution confirms that this news is false and baseless and has authorised a judicial investigation against websites and anyone who is discovered by the investigation to have deliberately used communication networks to spread false rumours with the aim of attacking the rights of others and harming public security,” said the Tunisian News Agency.

Media sites had reported that Dbeibeh and the head of Libya’s Al-Watan Party, Abdul Hakim Belhaj, had both been summoned for questioning in a terrorism-related case involving Tunisian businessman Chafik Jarraya.

In 2021, Dbeibeh sparked angry reactions in Libya and Tunisia after accusing the latter of “exporting terrorism” to his country, before he was later forced to amend his statements, stressing that Tunisia and Libya are one nation. He justified his previous statements by citing security reports from Tunisia that he described as “fabricated”, talking about an attempt by a Libyan group supported by the government to assassinate President Kais Saied.

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