Sami Fehri

The indictment chamber of the Court of Appeals in Tunis rejected today a request for the release of Sami Fehri, TV producer and director of Ettounsiya Television, confirmed Sonia Dahmani, Fehri’s attorney, to Tunisia Live. The chamber also issued arrest warrants for each of the five former CEO’s of Ettounsiya, added Dahmani.

“It was not surprising to me… It is a continuous play, which aims at keeping Fehri in prison for an unknown objective,” said Dahmani.

Mosaique FM reported that Dahmani boycotted today’s hearing in protest of the non-implementation of the Court of Appeals’ decision, which ordered Fehri’s release in November.

Today’s trial was closed to the public and comes a week after Fehri undertook a dry hunger strike for five days during which his health condition deteriorated.

Following an assessment by a medical team, which found his health to be in a precarious state, Fehri was transferred on December 27 from Mornaguia prison to the Habib Thameur military hospital in Tunis to be treated.

Fehri stands accused of misappropriating national television funds to create Cactus Productions company, which he co-owned with Belhassen Trabelsi, the brother-in-law of ousted president Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali.