In the streets of Tunis, citizens marched beneath Palestinian and Tunisian flags to demand the freedom of four men whose effort to deliver aid to Gaza has landed them in a detention cell. Since March, Wael Naouar, Ghassen Henchiri, Ghassen Boughdiri, and Nabil Channoufi have been held on financial charges their supporters call a pretext — a judicial instrument wielded against conscience rather than crime. One of them, now more than a month into a hunger strike, is fading in ways that transform a political dispute into a question of life itself. The case has become a mirror in which Tunisia mus
Tunisian activists protest detention of four Gaza aid workers amid hunger strike crisis
Four activists detained since March; one on 35-day hunger strike with severe health deterioration including fainting, breathing difficulty, hallucinations, and 20kg+ weight loss; another requires urgent surgery.
There is now a real danger threatening him
Mark
Why does a case about financial irregularities in a fundraising operation become a symbol for something larger?
Mimi
Because the activists and their supporters see the charges as a pretext. The flotilla was about Gaza solidarity—that's the real issue. The financial allegations give the government legal cover to detain people it views as threats to order.
Luke
But we should be careful here. The source says the charges are "alleged" and the activists "deny wrongdoing." We don't actually know what the investigation found. One side says it's political persecution; the government says it's legitimate law enforcement. Both could be true in part.
Mark
What about the hunger strike itself—is that a common protest tactic in Tunisian detention?
Mimi
It's a last resort. When you've exhausted legal channels and believe the system is rigged against you, refusing food becomes your only leverage. Naouar started alone in August; the others joined in September. That's a coordinated escalation.
Luke
The health details are alarming—fainting, breathing difficulty, hallucinations, 20 kilograms lost. But those come from supporters and the defense committee, not from independent medical observation. We should note that.
Mark
What does Human Rights Watch actually say about the broader pattern?
Mimi
They've documented that Tunisia uses financial and counterterrorism laws against civil society broadly—not just this case. They've also criticized Saied for concentrating power and weakening judicial independence since 2021. So the activists' claim fits into a documented pattern.
Luke
Yes, but that's about structural concerns—the presidency consolidating power, parliament weakening. The specific question of whether these four committed financial crimes is separate. The pattern doesn't prove the charges are false; it just shows the system is vulnerable to abuse.
Mark
So what happens next?
Mimi
The hunger strike continues. The supporters are calling for escalation. There's international attention now. The court has extended detention four more months, so unless something changes, these men stay in prison.
Luke
And the surgery Henchiri needs—that's a real medical emergency separate from the hunger strike. If that doesn't happen soon, there's a concrete harm that's not about politics.
Il Polso
- Wael Naouar has refused food for 35 days and is now experiencing fainting, hallucinations, and breathing difficulty — his body a protest the state cannot easily ignore.
- A court extended the four activists' pre-trial detention by four months just as their physical condition reached a critical threshold, intensifying the standoff between supporters and authorities.
- A second medical emergency shadows the case: fellow detainee Ghassen Henchiri requires urgent surgery for an injury sustained during earlier detention in Israel, yet the recommended procedure has not been carried out.
- Supporters, former student union leaders, and rights groups are calling for escalating mobilization, framing the prosecutions as part of a systematic campaign to criminalize civil society under President Kais Saied's consolidated executive power.
- Human Rights Watch and other international observers warn that Tunisia's financial and anti-money laundering laws are being repurposed as tools of political suppression, placing the country under growing global scrutiny.
In the streets of Tunis, citizens marched beneath Palestinian and Tunisian flags to demand the freedom of four men whose effort to deliver aid to Gaza has landed them in a detention cell. Since March, Wael Naouar, Ghassen Henchiri, Ghassen Boughdiri, and Nabil Channoufi have been held on financial charges their supporters call a pretext — a judicial instrument wielded against conscience rather than crime. One of them, now more than a month into a hunger strike, is fading in ways that transform a political dispute into a question of life itself. The case has become a mirror in which Tunisia must confront what it is becoming: a state where solidarity with the suffering can be made to look like a felony.
On a Saturday in central Tunis, dozens of demonstrators marched from the Tunisian National Journalists' Union toward Avenue Habib Bourguiba, carrying flags and portraits of four detained men. They chanted that the street belongs to the people and demanded the release of Wael Naouar, Ghassen Henchiri, Ghassen Boughdiri, and Nabil Channoufi — members of the Global Sumud Flotilla, an international initiative to break Israel's blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid.
The four have been held since March on allegations of financial irregularities tied to flotilla fundraising. A court recently extended their pre-trial detention by four more months. The activists and their lawyers deny any wrongdoing, and their supporters argue the charges are a political instrument — part of a broader effort to silence dissent and Palestinian solidarity under President Kais Saied's government.
The protest's most urgent dimension was medical. Naouar began an open-ended hunger strike on August 16; the other three joined him on September 9. By the day of the march, Naouar had gone without food for roughly 35 days, losing more than 20 kilograms. Supporters described repeated fainting spells, breathing difficulties, and hallucinations. Ghassen Bouaazi, of the National Committee for the Defence of Sumud Flotilla Activists, told Al Jazeera there was now a real danger to Naouar's life, and held President Saied morally, legally, and politically responsible for whatever might follow.
A parallel crisis involves Henchiri, who requires urgent surgery for an injury sustained during earlier detention in Israel — a procedure recommended by a prison doctor but not yet performed. Former student union leaders and civil society figures have issued public statements demanding immediate release and pledging escalating action.
The case unfolds against a documented pattern. Human Rights Watch has recorded how Tunisian authorities increasingly deploy financial crime and counterterrorism laws against journalists, rights defenders, and trade unionists. Since 2021, Saied has concentrated power in the presidency, weakened parliament, and drawn sustained criticism for undermining judicial independence — accusations his government rejects. For those in the streets of Tunis, however, the four men in detention are not criminals but proof of how far a state can drift when solidarity itself becomes suspect.
In central Tunis on Saturday, dozens of people marched through the streets carrying Palestinian and Tunisian flags, their placards bearing the faces of four men locked away in detention. The demonstration began at the headquarters of the Tunisian National Journalists' Union and moved toward Avenue Habib Bourguiba, the city's symbolic heart. The protesters chanted against what they saw as government repression—"the street belongs to the people," they called out—and demanded the release of Wael Naouar, Ghassen Henchiri, Ghassen Boughdiri, and Nabil Channoufi, all members of the Global Sumud Flotilla, an international effort to challenge Israel's blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid.
The four men have been held since March. A court had just extended their pre-trial detention by another four months, according to Tunisian state media citing judicial sources. They face investigation into alleged financial irregularities connected to fundraising for the flotilla. The activists and their legal representatives deny any wrongdoing. Their supporters argue the charges are part of a broader campaign to suppress civil society and political opposition under President Kais Saied's government.
The immediate crisis driving the Saturday protest was medical. Naouar began an open-ended hunger strike on August 16 to protest his detention. Three weeks later, on September 9, the other three detainees joined him. By the time of the demonstration, Naouar had been refusing food for roughly 35 days. Ghassen Bouaazi, a member of the National Committee for the Defence of Sumud Flotilla Activists, described the deterioration in stark terms: repeated fainting spells, difficulty breathing, hallucinations, and a loss of more than 20 kilograms—44 pounds. "There is now a real danger threatening him," Bouaazi told Al Jazeera at the protest. He held President Saied and his government "politically, legally and morally responsible" for any harm that might come to the detainees.
Bouaazi and other supporters framed the case as part of a pattern. Financial crime and money laundering allegations, he said, had been deployed against other activists, journalists, rights defenders, and trade unionists in Tunisia. The judicial system itself, he argued, was not independent but subject to the executive branch's control. The prosecution of the flotilla activists, in this view, was aimed at criminalizing independent solidarity with Palestinians and reflected an increasingly security-focused approach to public life in Tunisia.
The detention also raised a secondary medical emergency. Henchiri, one of the four, required urgent surgery following complications from an injury he had sustained during earlier detention in Israel. A prison doctor had recommended the procedure, but it had not been performed. Nidhal Khadraoui, a former secretary-general of Tunisia's General Students Union and a supporter of the detainees, said Naouar and the others remained determined to continue their hunger strike until their release.
The case arrived amid broader international scrutiny of Tunisia's civil society space. Human Rights Watch has documented how Tunisian authorities increasingly use financial, anti-money laundering, and counterterrorism legislation against civil society actors. The group has also criticized Saied for concentrating power in the presidency since 2021, weakening parliament, and undermining judicial independence. The use of prolonged pre-trial detention has drawn particular concern. Saied's government has rejected these accusations, insisting that the judiciary operates independently and that legal proceedings follow the law.
On Tuesday, days before the Saturday protest, former members of Tunisia's General Students Union and activists from different generations of the student movement had issued a statement calling for the immediate release of the four detainees. They urged student, trade union, rights, and civil society groups to mobilize around the case and held Saied and his government responsible for the safety of the hunger strikers. Khadraoui told Al Jazeera that the Tunisian state was "acting on behalf of the Zionist entity" in punishing the activists for their work on behalf of Gaza and Palestine. "All upcoming actions will be escalatory," he said, and he held Saied's authorities "fully responsible for putting our comrades in prison."
Citazioni salienti
Wael Naouar has been on hunger strike for about 35 days and his health has deteriorated considerably. There is now a real danger threatening him.— Ghassen Bouaazi, National Committee for the Defence of Sumud Flotilla Activists
The Tunisian state, acting on behalf of the Zionist entity, is punishing our comrades for their struggle for Gaza and Palestine. All upcoming actions will be escalatory.— Nidhal Khadraoui, former secretary-general of Tunisia's General Students Union
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