The dance of the slaughtered rooster: Tunisia’s Muslim Brotherhood seeks a return through the Iranian gateway
Tunisia’s Muslim Brotherhood is attempting to re-enter the streets by leveraging regional developments, in what appears to be a forward escape from mounting legal crises and a collapse in public support.
The Muslim Brotherhood in Tunisia is facing an unprecedented judicial and political crackdown, reflected in heavy prison sentences handed down to prominent leaders such as Rached Ghannouchi and Ali Larayedh in serious cases, including the “sending of youth to terrorist hotspots,” “political assassinations,” the “secret apparatus,” “conspiracy against state security,” and foreign financing, amid growing public and parliamentary calls to ban the organization and hold it accountable.
In this context, the Brotherhood organized solidarity events with Iran during March, in a desperate attempt to regain a presence in the streets.
Observers of the Tunisian political scene believe the organization seizes on any international event as an opportunity to mobilize in the streets and reposition itself, particularly after losing its popular support.
Exploiting the situation
Tunisian political activist Khaled Bel Taher stated that the organization “exploits any international event to return to the political scene, especially given the political isolation it is experiencing,” noting that these movements aim to appeal to public sentiment in order to re-establish its position.
He affirmed that the organization is now attempting to capitalize on any international development to restore its lost popularity, following the failure of all its protest movements demanding the release of its leaders.
According to Bel Taher, these attempts are being met with public disengagement in Tunisia, particularly as they are seen as efforts to evade issues related to political assassinations, the “dispatching to conflict zones,” and internal crises.
He also emphasized that the organization is currently undergoing a political and popular collapse due to unresolved issues from the previous period, especially after appellate rulings imposing prison sentences of up to several decades, which have weakened it internally.
He added that the organization is besieged on all fronts and that its position has further deteriorated following the submission by members of the Tunisian parliament of a draft law to classify the Ennahdha Movement, the group’s political arm, as a terrorist organization and to ban it entirely, suggesting that the proposal could lead to its dissolution and the confiscation of its assets.
He concluded that the Muslim Brotherhood in Tunisia “is performing the dance of the slaughtered rooster, striving by all means to regain its influence and reassert its impact on Tunisian society.”
Tunisian lawmakers have recently introduced a bill calling for the dissolution of the Ennahdha Movement and its designation as a terrorist organization.
