Court Sentences Political Activist Ilyas Shawsheh to Six Months in Absentia

The Criminal Chamber 8 of the First Instance Court in Tunis, in an absentia ruling, sentenced the political activist Ilyas Shawsheh, son of the opposition and imprisoned lawyer Gazi Shawsheh, to six months in prison for posts on social media.

The new sentence raises the total prison sentences announced against Shawsheh, who resides in France, to 96 years and two months in prison, taking into account the latest documented total of 95 years and eight months in July 2026, and adding the new sentence to it.

The sentences issued against him are distributed across several cases, including a three-year sentence in January 2024, 16 years in November 2025, 12 years in another case in the same month, as well as a 15-year sentence issued on July 3, 2026, in addition to other sentences in separate files.

The latest case concerns accusations of using information systems to spread false news and rumors, spreading personal data, libel, and defaming his reputation.

Tunisian and international human rights organizations criticized the successive sentences issued against Shawsheh and raised questions about freedom of expression and fair trial guarantees, especially as several legal proceedings were linked to videos and posts criticizing the authorities and defending his imprisoned father.