(25 Jul 2025)
RESTRICTIONS SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Tunis, Tunisia – 25 July 2025
1. Female protester walking with cage around her head
2. Close of protester holding sign with photo of prisoner Abdelhamid Jelassi, reading (Arabic): "Freedom from Tunisia to Palestine"
3. Protesters holding signs reading (Arabic): "No fear, no intimidation, power belongs to the people"
4. Woman with sign
5. Wide of protesters chanting UPSOUND (Arabic): "Freedom, freedom! No to a judiciary under orders"
6. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Saida Akremi, wife of the imprisoned Noureddine Bhiri:
"This day is a coup against the constitution and the state institutions, against everything the Tunisian people have built. I am here to demand freedom for political prisoners, freedom for all detainees, lawyers, judges, and honorable citizens filling the prisons."
7. Female protester holding a photo of Rached Ghannouchi
8. Close of banner with lawyer Ahmed Souab, reading (Arabic): "Freedom for Ahmed Souab"
9. Various of protesters calling for Ahmed Souab’s release
10. Banner at march reading (Arabic): "July 25 Tunisia has become one big prison"
11. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Samir Dilou, member of the National Salvation Front:
"July 25 was supposed to be Republic Day, but it’s become a day of oppression. The revolution was crushed, and all powers were seized by one man, regardless of his abilities. Absolute power corrupts absolutely."
12. Various of protesters chanting UPSOUND (Arabic): "It’s your turn, Kais, the dictator"
13. Protester holding sign reading (English): "Justice for Sweb"
14. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Hafsia Bourguiba, activist and supporter of jailed politician Abir Moussi:
"Almost the entire political class is behind bars. Among the women imprisoned are Abir Moussi, Sonia Dahmani, Sherifa Riyahi, Saida Mosbah, Souar Berkaoui, and journalist Chadi Al-Haj Mubarak. More than 15 women are in prison – something we never thought we’d see: free Tunisian women locked up."
15. Various of protest
STORYLINE:
Tunisians took to the streets Friday to protest President Kais Saied, marking four years since he made moves to consolidate his one-man rule in a country once known as the birthplace of the Arab Spring pro-democracy uprisings.
On July 25, 2021, Saied suspended parliament, dismissed his prime minister and invoked a state of emergency to begin ruling by decree. Though some cheered his efforts, critics called the moves a coup and said the events marked the beginning of Tunisia’s descent toward authoritarianism.
In the heart of Tunis, a powerful scene unfolded: a protester stood inside a symbolic cage, representing the political imprisonment that many believe has come to define Tunisia’s current era. Nearby, a raised hand held a portrait of Abdelhamid Jelassi, a prominent political detainee, with the words: “Freedom from Tunisia to Palestine.”
Crowds chanted in unison “No fear, no terror, power to the people.” Banners and posters carried the faces of imprisoned opposition leaders, most notably Rached Ghannouchi, the head of Ennahda, Tunisia’s largest Islamist party.
The message was clear: what began in 2021 as a promise of reform has become, for many Tunisians, a return to repression.
Samir Dilo, a leading figure in the opposition National Salvation Front, spoke with sharp clarity:
"July 25 used to mark the Republic’s founding. Now, it marks its dismantling. We’ve seen one man take over all powers. Absolute power is absolute corruption."
"I’m here," she said, "to say freedom for all political prisoners, lawyers, judges, and the honorable citizens of this country who now fill its prisons."
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