A Tunisian court on Tuesday upheld an eight-year prison sentence for anti-racism activist Saadia Mosbah on financial misconduct charges, two of her lawyers said.
Mosbah, head of the anti-discrimination group Mnemty, was detained in 2024 amid a wider crackdown on several NGOs providing aid to undocumented migrants from sub-Saharan African countries in Tunisia.
Mosbah has been at the forefront of defending sub-Saharan migrants in Tunisia, particularly after a 2023 speech by President Kais Saied in which he denounced “hordes of illegal migrants” as a demographic threat. The speech sparked a rise in anti-migrant sentiment and attacks on Black Africans in the country.
Defense lawyers have insisted on Mosbah’s innocence. “Saadia is an activist and thanks to her, we have a law against racism that we are proud of,” lawyer Hayet Jazzar told the court, referring to a 2018 law prohibiting racial discrimination.
Jazzar said the case against Mosbah, who is Black, was “triggered by hate speech.”
Another defense lawyer, Bassem Trifi, said Mosbah had been “targeted by a racist campaign on social media” shortly before her 2024 arrest. She had told him “she felt something was strange,” Trifi told the judge.
Amnesty International said in a statement that Mosbah’s trial was “based on unfounded financial criminal charges” and that her verdict was “tainted” by a “coordinated racist smear campaign.”
The rights group added it was “particularly concerned by reports that Saadia Mosbah has been subjected to racism and a physical assault in prison that may amount to torture.”
Mosbah’s detention is part of a broader series of arrests targeting NGOs and activists working with migrants in Tunisia since 2024.
Source: africanews.
