First Independent Mena Newspaper
President Beji Caid Essebsi of Tunisia has been accused of sneaking members of his family and relatives in the official Tunisian delegation to perform this year’s Hajj in Saudi Arabia. The tirade published by Acharaa Al Magharibi media points out that relatives of the President will freely travel to Saudi Arabia for the pilgrimage, which […]
Tunisians of all walks of life are divided over the issue of gender equality in inheritance rights. A controversial reform of the inheritance law unveiled in this regard by President Beji Caid Essebsi and backed by the mufti of Tunisia has sparked fierce and endless debates between conservatives and liberals. Islamic (sharia) law generally gives […]
The interior ministry announced Tuesday that security forces had foiled operations by some militants of the Islamic State group (ISIS) to seize the town of Ben Guerdane, at the Libyan border. The ministry pointed out that the militants sought to attack police and military establishments in the Southern town with the aim of controlling the […]
Tunisia’s President Beji Caid Essebsi said that time is up to amend the Tunisian inheritance law in order to guarantee equality between men and women. Speaking on the occasion of the national Women’s Day, the Tunisian President explained that the current law, derived from the Sharia granting women half men’s share in inheritance, should be […]
Travel giant TUI Travel Group Mulls Returning To Tunisia is considering the possibility to resume operations from the UK to Tunisia, but the final decision depends on sales and approval of British authorities. The Foreign Office relaxed its travel advice for Tunisia at the end of July after two years of restrictions. According to TUI […]
Illicit cigarettes accounted for over 20% of consumption across the Maghreb region in 2016. However successful prevention strategies have resulted in a 24% decline since 2015, said the Amsterdam based professional service and auditing company KPMG in a recent study. The study, dubbed “Illicit Cigarette Trade in the Maghreb Region,” shows the 13 billion smuggled […]
President Rached Ghannouchi of the Ennahdha political party has called on the country’s National Unity Government to prioritize the “economic challenges facing Tunisia and the upcoming (municipal and local) elections” instead of the political future of a Minister or Prime Minister. Presidential and parliamentary elections are scheduled to take place in 2019 but they have […]
In a bid to revamp rail transport in the Maghreb region, the Secretariat of the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) is supervising a feasibility study worth $1.7 billion, funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB). The train aims to link the three countries of Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. The feasibility studies are launched at a time […]
Cutting US military aid to Tunisia is a “misguided and dangerous” decision representing a stark departure with the US President’s plan to “demolish and destroy” the Islamic State (ISIS), said Sarah Yerkes of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in an opinion piece on The Hill. The article criticizes Trump’s budget blueprint released on May […]
Head of the Moroccan Government Saad Eddine El Othmani and his Tunisian peer Youssef Chahed chaired on June 19 in Rabat the signing ceremony of 13 cooperation agreements in fields relating to training and economy. The agreements were signed following the 19th High Joint Moroccan-Tunisian committee, which convened following talks between El Othmani and Chahed […]