Thank you for taking action! Journalist, Mohamed Boughalleb was released, so no further action is needed at this time.
Journalist, Mohamed Boughalleb, has been arbitrarily detained since his arrest by security forces on March 22, 2024 following a complaint by a senior official of the Ministry of Religious Affairs. The complaint was based on comments Mohamed Boughalleb’s made publicly on his social media page as well as on TV and radio shows, questioning spending by the Ministry of Religious Affairs. He was subsequently convicted and sentenced to eight months in prison for defaming the official. He is also arbitrarily held in pre-trial detention in a separate case under Decree-Law 2022-54 on Cybercrimes, also in connection with his public comments. His health has severely deteriorated during his detention, amid the failure of the authorities to grant him access to adequate healthcare. The Tunisian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release Mohamed Boughalleb as he is detained solely for peacefully exercising his right to freedom of expression.
PLEASE TAKE ACTION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE UNTIL: June 24, 2025
Your Excellency,
I am writing to express my concern over the prolonged arbitrary detention of 60-year-old journalist, Mohamed Boughalleb, who has been held since March 2024 soley for peacefully exercising his human rights. Security forces arrested him based on a complaint submitted by a senior official of the Ministry of Religious Affairs after Mohamed Boughalleb publicly questioned the ministry’s spending.
Mohamed Boughalleb’s health has severely deteriorated during his unjust detention, and he has not been granted access to adequate medical care in prison, including his daily medicine. On November 4, 2024, Mohamed Boughalleb was transferred from his prison cell to another wing of El Mornaguia prison where conditions are worse due to overcrowding.
I urge you to ensure the immediate and unconditional release of Mohamed Boughalleb. Pending his release, I call on you to ensure that he is held in conditions meeting international standards for the treatment of prisoners and granted regular access to adequate healthcare. Moreover, I call on the Tunisian authorities to cease targeted arrests of critics, journalists, and political opponents for the peaceful exercise of their rights to freedom of expression.
Yours sincerely,
[YOUR NAME]
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