Tunisian protesters demand release of four Sumud activists

The protest comes as the health of one hunger-striking detainee deteriorates after more than a month on hunger strike.

Tunisian protesters march in central Tunis calling for the release of four Global Sumud Flotilla activists detained in a financial investigation, on September 19, 2026 [Ghaya Ben Mbarek/Al Jazeera]

Tunis, Tunisia – Dozens of people protested in Tunis on Saturday demanding the release of four Global Sumud Flotilla activists, as concern mounts over their deteriorating health after one of them entered his second month of a hunger strike.

The protesters marched from the headquarters of the Tunisian National Journalists’ Union (SNJT) to Avenue Habib Bourguiba in central Tunis, carrying Tunisian and Palestinian flags and portraits of the four detainees and calling for their release and an end to the case against them.

They also chanted anti-government slogans, including: “No fear, no terror, the street belongs to the people”, “Down with the president’s repression, down with the oppression of the people”, and “Your narrative is a Zionist one, you agents of imperialism.”

The demonstration came days after a court extended the pre-trial detention of Wael Naouar, Ghassen Henchiri, Ghassen Boughdiri and Nabil Channoufi by another four months. They have been held since March in an investigation into alleged financial irregularities linked to fundraising for the flotilla, according to Tunisian state media, citing judicial sources.

The four activists and their defence team deny wrongdoing, while supporters say the case is part of a wider crackdown on civil society and political dissent.

Tunisian protesters march in solidarity with four detained Global Sumud Flotilla activists during a demonstration in Tunis on September 19, 2026 [Ghaya Ben Mbarek/Al Jazeera]

Naouar, a member of the flotilla’s steering committee, began an open-ended hunger strike on August 16 to protest his detention. The other three joined him on September 9, according to statements from supporters and the Global Sumud Flotilla.

Ghassen Bouaazi, a member of the National Committee for the Defence of Sumud Flotilla Activists, said Naouar’s health had deteriorated significantly.

“Wael Naouar has been on hunger strike for about 35 days and his health has deteriorated considerably,” Bouaazi told Al Jazeera on the sidelines of Saturday’s protest.

He said Naouar had experienced repeated fainting, difficulty breathing and hallucinations and had lost more than 20kg (44lb).

“There is now a real danger threatening him,” Bouaazi said, adding that the committee holds President Kais Saied and his government politically, legally and morally responsible for any harm that might come to the detainees.

“We demand that the authorities close this case once and for all,” Bouaazi said, describing the accusations against the four activists as “dubious claims”.

He described the arrests as part of what he called a broader campaign targeting political activists, journalists, rights defenders and trade unionists, saying similar financial crime and money laundering allegations had been used in other cases.

He said the case was unfolding within “a judicial system that is not independent and is subject to the executive branch’s monopoly”.

Bouaazi said the committee believes the prosecution of the flotilla activists is aimed at criminalising independent popular solidarity with Palestinians and is part of what he described as an increasingly security-focused approach to protests and public life in Tunisia.

The four activists are members of the Global Sumud Flotilla, an international campaign that sought to challenge Israel’s blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid.

Calls for wider mobilisation

The latest demonstration follows a statement issued on Tuesday by former members of Tunisia’s General Students Union (UGET) and activists from different generations of the student movement, who called for the immediate release of the four detainees, including Naouar, a former secretary-general of UGET.

The group said Saied and his government were responsible for the safety of the hunger strikers and urged student, trade union, rights and civil society groups to mobilise around the detainees’ case.

Tunisian protesters gather in Tunis calling for the release of four Global Sumud Flotilla activists, amid growing concern over the health of a detainee on hunger strike, on September 19, 2026 [Ghaya Ben Mbarek/Al Jazeera]

According to Nidhal Khadraoui, another former secretary-general of UGET, Naouar and the other activists remain determined to continue their hunger strike until their release.

Khadraoui also said Henchiri is in urgent need of surgery following complications from a previous injury he sustained during his detention in Israel, but that the procedure has not been carried out despite a prison doctor’s recommendation.

Supporters of the Global Sumud Flotilla have also rallied, calling for the immediate release of the “Sumud four” and saying their continued detention has become a focus of international concern.

The case comes amid broader concerns from rights groups about the shrinking space for civil society in Tunisia.

Human Rights Watch said Tunisian authorities have increasingly used financial, anti-money laundering and counterterrorism legislation against civil society actors and activists. The group has also criticised Saied for concentrating power in the presidency since 2021, weakening parliament and undermining judicial independence, and has raised concerns about the use of prolonged pre-trial detention.

The demonstration came after a Tunisian court extended the pre-trial detention of four Global Sumud Flotilla activists by another four months, in Tunis on September 19, 2026 [Ghaya Ben Mbarek/Al Jazeera]

Saied’s government has rejected accusations that the judiciary is being used to silence opponents, saying the judiciary is independent and legal proceedings are conducted according to the law.

“The Tunisian state, acting on behalf of the Zionist entity, is punishing our comrades for their struggle for Gaza and Palestine,” Khadraoui told Al Jazeera.

“All upcoming actions will be escalatory, and we hold Kais Saied’s authorities fully responsible for putting our comrades in prison,” he said.

此次抗议活动发生之际，一名绝食抗议的被拘留者在绝食一个多月后健康状况恶化。

2026年9月19日，突尼斯抗议者在突尼斯市中心游行，呼吁释放四名因金融调查而被拘留的“全球苏穆德船队”活动人士。[Ghaya Ben Mbarek/半岛电视台]

突尼斯，突尼斯——周六，数十人在突尼斯举行抗议活动，要求释放四名“全球苏穆德船队”活动人士。此前，其中一名活动人士已绝食两个月，人们越来越担心他们的健康状况恶化。

抗议者从突尼斯全国记者联盟（SNJT）总部游行至突尼斯市中心的哈比卜·布尔吉巴大街，他们挥舞着突尼斯和巴勒斯坦国旗，并举着四名被拘留者的画像，呼吁释放他们，并结束对他们的指控。

他们还高喊反政府口号，包括：“不要恐惧，不要恐怖，街道属于人民”、“打倒总统的镇压，打倒对人民的压迫”以及“你们的叙事是犹太复国主义的，你们这些帝国主义的代理人”。

此次示威活动发生在法院将瓦埃勒·纳瓦尔、加森·亨奇里、加森·布格迪里和纳比勒·沙努菲的审前拘留期限延长四个月的几天后。据突尼斯国家媒体援引司法消息人士报道，自三月份以来，他们一直因涉嫌与船队筹款相关的财务违规行为而接受调查。

这四名活动人士及其辩护团队否认有任何不当行为，而支持者则表示，此案是针对公民社会和政治异议的更广泛镇压的一部分。

2026年9月19日，突尼斯抗议者在突尼斯举行示威游行，声援四名被拘留的“全球苏穆德船队”活动人士。[Ghaya Ben Mbarek/半岛电视台]

纳瓦尔是船队指导委员会成员，他于8月16日开始无限期绝食抗议自己被拘留。据支持者和全球苏穆德船队声明，其他三人于9月9日加入他的行列。

苏穆德船队活动人士全国保卫委员会成员加森·布阿齐表示，纳瓦尔的健康状况已明显恶化。

“瓦埃勒·纳瓦尔已经绝食约35天了，他的健康状况已经严重恶化，”布阿齐在周六的抗议活动间隙告诉半岛电视台。

他说，纳瓦尔反复出现昏厥、呼吸困难和幻觉，体重减轻了 20 多公斤（44 磅）。

“现在他面临着真正的危险，”布阿齐说，并补充说，委员会认为总统凯斯·赛义德及其政府对被拘留者可能遭受的任何伤害负有政治、法律和道德责任。

“我们要求当局彻底结案，”布阿齐说，并将对这四名活动人士的指控描述为“可疑的说法”。

他将此次逮捕行动描述为针对政治活动家、记者、人权捍卫者和工会成员的更广泛行动的一部分，并表示类似的金融犯罪和洗钱指控也曾在其他案件中使用过。

他说，此案是在一个“不独立的司法系统，受制于行政部门的垄断”中审理的。

布阿齐表示，委员会认为对船队活动人士的起诉旨在将与巴勒斯坦人独立进行的民众声援定为犯罪，这是他所描述的突尼斯日益注重安全、以抗议和公共生活为重点的做法的一部分。

这四名活动人士是全球萨穆德船队的成员，这是一项旨在挑战以色列对加沙的封锁并向其提供人道主义援助的国际运​​动。

呼吁扩大动员​​范围

最新示威活动是在突尼斯学生总联盟 (UGET) 前成员和不同世代学生运动积极分子周二发表声明之后发生的。他们在声明中呼吁立即释放四名被拘留者，其中包括 UGET 前秘书长纳瓦尔。

该组织表示，赛义德及其政府有责任保障绝食者的安全，并敦促学生团体、工会团体、人权团体和民间社会团体围绕被拘留者的案件动员起来。

2026年9月19日，突尼斯抗议者聚集在突尼斯，呼吁释放四名“全球苏穆德船队”活动人士，同时人们越来越担心一名绝食抗议的被拘留者的健康状况。[Ghaya Ben Mbarek/半岛电视台]

据另一位前UGET秘书长尼达尔·卡德拉维称，纳瓦尔和其他活动人士仍然决心继续绝食抗议，直到获释。

哈德拉维还表示，亨奇里此前在以色列被拘留期间受伤，目前因伤势并发症急需手术，但尽管监狱医生建议进行手术，但手术仍未进行。

全球苏木德船队的支持者也举行集会，呼吁立即释放“苏木德四人组”，并表示他们持续被拘留已成为国际社会关注的焦点。

此事发生之际，人权组织对突尼斯公民社会空间日益萎缩表示更广泛的担忧。

人权观察组织表示，突尼斯当局越来越多地利用金融、反洗钱和反恐法律来打压民间社会人士和活动家。该组织还批评赛义德自2021年以来将权力集中于总统府，削弱议会，损害司法独立，并对长期审前羁押的做法表示关切。

2026年9月19日，突尼斯一家法院将四名“全球苏穆德船队”活动人士的审前拘留期限延长了四个月，随后爆发了示威活动。[Ghaya Ben Mbarek/半岛电视台]

赛义德政府驳斥了有关司法机构被用来压制反对派的指控，称司法机构是独立的，法律程序是依法进行的。

“突尼斯政府代表犹太复国主义实体，惩罚我们为加沙和巴勒斯坦而奋斗的同志们，”哈德拉维告诉半岛电视台。

他说：“接下来的所有行动都将是逐步升级的，我们认为凯斯·赛义德的当局应对将我们的同志投入监狱负全部责任。”