The Tunisian Brotherhood and the Blood of Brahmi… “The Wolf’s Cloak” Does Not Absolve the Sin

They hastily cloaked themselves in the guise of the wolf, swearing by all that is sacred that they were innocent of the blood of Mohamed Brahmi, conveniently forgetting that guilt is not borne by the perpetrator alone.

This is the strategy of the Tunisian Brotherhood, a group desperately trying to shirk its responsibility for the assassination of the nationalist politician in front of his home twelve years ago.

Following the sentencing of Brahmi’s killers to death, the Ennahdha movement swiftly released a statement proclaiming its innocence regarding the assassination.

In its statement issued on Thursday, the movement claimed that it was “the greatest victim of political assassinations” and that it had “repeatedly demanded the expedited resolution of these cases, especially since the criminal elements who planned and carried out the assassinations were quickly arrested while the movement was part of the government.”

Ennahdha further urged “the judiciary to expedite the resolution of cases it had filed against those who deliberately defamed it and falsely accused its leaders,” conveniently ignoring the magnitude of its own crimes.

Layers of the Case

Political analysts observing the Tunisian landscape argue that Brahmi’s assassination case comprises several interconnected files: the execution team, surveillance and recruitment, the Brotherhood’s secret apparatus, and the planning group.

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They unanimously agree that Ennahdha is not innocent of Brahmi’s blood, accusing it of orchestrating and indirectly executing the assassination through the banned Ansar al-Sharia organization.

Fingerprints

Mohsen Nabti, spokesperson for the Popular Current Party in Tunisia, stated that “Mustapha Khedr, a senior Ennahdha leader (currently a fugitive abroad), was the head of the Brotherhood’s secret apparatus involved in the assassination, as confirmed by judicial rulings.”

Nabti described the case as fragmented, consisting of multiple sub-cases and files. He noted that “the first issue is the prosecution of the execution team, which was resolved on Tuesday with the sentencing of eight members of the banned Ansar al-Sharia group to death.”

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He further explained that “those who concealed the American intelligence document, those who were negligent, those who conspired, those who incited, and those who facilitated the escape of the killers—all of them are guilty and will be held accountable.”

According to Nabti, “the case has taken a significant step forward,” but he emphasized that “the most difficult phase of the assassination case has yet to be fully revealed to the Tunisian people, although it has already been exposed in court.”

He pointed out that “Tunisians will eventually learn about the horrific crimes that took place in their country, what happened within the Ministry of Interior, and how Ennahdha exploited it by embedding operatives to facilitate assassinations and send terrorists to conflict zones.”

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Warnings Ignored

According to local media, the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) had sent a document to Tunisia warning of a possible assassination attempt on Mohamed Brahmi on July 15, 2013—just ten days before the attack.

Former Tunisian Interior Minister Lotfi Ben Jeddou previously admitted that the ministry had prior knowledge of the assassination plot through a foreign intelligence document received 11 days before the incident.

On July 25, 2013, Mohamed Brahmi, founder of the Popular Current Party, was shot 14 times in front of his home in a suburb of the capital—six bullets piercing his upper body and eight hitting his left leg—in a horrific attack witnessed by his wife and children.

The gunmen, who were on a motorcycle, used a 9mm pistol. Investigations later identified the perpetrators as Abu Bakr al-Hakim and Lotfi al-Zein, members of the banned Ansar al-Sharia group.

The Secret Apparatus

Meanwhile, Iman Qazzara, a member of the legal defense team for assassinated politician Chokri Belaid, asserted that the Brotherhood’s secret apparatus was responsible for orchestrating Brahmi’s assassination, directly accusing Ennahdha leader Rached Ghannouchi of masterminding the operation.

Qazzara revealed that 37 individuals had appeared before the judiciary regarding the secret apparatus case, with 18 charges filed against them. Among those accused were former Brotherhood-affiliated Prime Minister Ali Laarayedh, Rached Ghannouchi, and Mohamed Ghmari—a mediator between extremist Salafist leaders from the banned Ansar al-Sharia group and Ennahdha.

She confirmed that this evidence is documented in court records and messages found on the accused individuals’ phones.

Qazzara also noted that former Ansar al-Sharia members testified in court, revealing how they were funded by Ennahdha to carry out various operations, including delivering supplies to militants in the mountains and coordinating activities related to weapons and targeted individuals.

She stated that “the secret apparatus case includes written evidence proving that it infiltrated state institutions and committed crimes against the state.”

She also identified Abdelaziz Daghssani as one of Ennahdha’s top leaders and the son-in-law of Rached Ghannouchi (married to his niece). He was responsible for managing the secret apparatus.

Qazzara further stated: “I have previously submitted documents and evidence to the judiciary and the presidency, proving his involvement in this apparatus and highlighting his key role in its formation, as well as his efforts to conceal documents incriminating Ennahdha.”

The Structure of the Secret Apparatus

The secret apparatus consists of Ennahdha members and senior figures, including Mustapha Khedr (a fugitive abroad), Hicham Chraib, Charefeddine Krisa’an, Khaled Triki, Taher Boubahri, Kais Bekkar, Belhassan Al-Naqqash, and Ali Al-Farshishi (all currently detained).

It also includes Kamel Al-Aifi (who fled to Malaysia), Ridha Al-Barouni (a fugitive abroad), Al-Arusi bin Ibrahim, Suleiman Oues, and Tamam Asba’i.

Additionally, high-ranking security officials were involved, such as former Tunisian intelligence chief Mehrez Zouari (detained) and Fathi Al-Baladi, known as “the man in the shadows,” who is currently imprisoned (for forming a parallel security apparatus), as well as Samir Al-Hanashi (also in prison).

In 2022, the Tunisian Public Prosecution at the Court of First Instance opened an investigation that included all the aforementioned names.

Former Interior Minister Lotfi Ben Jeddou had previously admitted that Ennahdha possessed surveillance devices more advanced than those used by the army and national security forces. These were highly sophisticated suitcase-sized devices capable of intercepting 4,000 calls simultaneously, typically transported in closed vehicles.

Furthermore, past disclosures by Brahmi’s legal defense team detailed how the Brotherhood’s secret apparatus operated within the state, comprising an intelligence network of 21,000 individuals embedded across various government institutions.

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