Political alliances in Tunisia are now on shifting sands to cast a delusion, according to observers, not only on the future of the parliamentary belt in support of the government, but also on the future of Rached Ghannouchi at the head of parliament after he issued a statement condemning his ideological and political ally, the Dignity Coalition.

The Parliament Speaker’s statement came to strongly condemn what he described as “the physical violence issued by some of the representatives of the Dignity Coalition against deputies from the opposition Democratic Current Party, in an incident that goes back more than a month, and the Dignity bloc denied responsibility for the incident.

In addition to the Dignity Coalition (18 deputies), the parliamentary belt in support of the government of Hisham El-Mechichi includes the Ennahda Movement (54 deputies) and the Heart of Tunisia Party (29 deputies).

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful Tunisia on January 15, 2021 🔴 Statement from the Speaker of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People The President of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People, upon his perusal of ...

Posted by Assembly of Representatives of the People Assemblée des Representants du Peuple on Friday, January 15, 2021

The head of the Dignity Coalition Bloc, Saifuddin Makhlouf, was quick to denounce the Parliament Speaker’s statement, describing it as a "stab in the back" of an Ennahda ally, accusing Ghannouchi of submitting to blackmail, stressing that his party is in no harmony with Ennahda, and with the belt that supports the government.

We are pleased with the cheap condemnation of the alleged assault ... * News: Sheikh Rashid Al-Khuraiji Al-Ghannouchi condemns in a statement that only represents his person, ...

Posted by Dr Mohamed Affes on Friday, January 15, 2021

“Ghannouchi will pay the price.”


Deputy for the Dignity Coalition, Abdul Latif Al-Alawi, told Al-Jazeera Net that “the statement of condemnation issued by the Speaker of Parliament will not pass without punishment, and through it, Ghannouchi will pay the price for his submission to the blackmail of the democratic current,” as he put it.

Al-Alawi considered that the Speaker of Parliament had been subjected to a "cheap" process of intimidation and blackmail from the Democratic Bloc, in which the hunger strike weapon was used by female representatives of the Democratic Movement, to push Ghannouchi to condemn the Dignity Coalition bloc.

He stressed that his party will not be within the parliamentary belt in support of the Mecheid government, and will not vote on any government reshuffle, but in return it will remain a guardian of the democratic transition path and a protector of parliamentary legitimacy from the enemies that lie in it.

Al-Alawi said that his bloc's previous standing with the Speaker of Parliament against the excesses of some blocs, such as the Free Constitutional Party bloc, and the accompanying attempts to withdraw confidence from him, will not be repeated.

He concluded by saying, "Let Ghannouchi fight his own battles on his own and bear responsibility for his actions, and if a petition to withdraw confidence is submitted against him, we will not extend our hand to him, and we will not save him as we did previously."

Political blackmail


The representative of the Democratic Movement, Samia Abbou, went on a hunger strike a few days ago, with her colleagues from the same party, to protest the failure of the Council’s office to issue a statement condemning the Dignity Coalition bloc, which led to the deterioration of her health condition.

Statement of the Democratic Bloc Tunisia On January 15, 2021, the Democratic Bloc fought its battle against the violence practiced in the Assembly of the Representatives of the People ...

Posted by Parliament’s Democratic Bloc - Bloc démocratique au parlement on Friday, January 15, 2021

In an interview with Al-Jazeera Net, the leader of the Ennahda Movement, Muhammad Al-Qoumani, accused the Democratic Bloc of practicing political blackmail and pressuring the Speaker of Parliament to push him to obtain a statement on the scale.

Regarding the statements of the head of the Dignity Coalition bloc in relation to the Speaker of Parliament and the Ennahda movement, Al-Qoumani described the matter as understandable and expected as a preliminary reaction, but added that the official position of the bloc would understand the contexts in which the statement of condemnation came.

The Ennahda Movement MP confirmed that the Speaker of Parliament was keen not to stop the functioning of the Council and raise the sit-in of the Democratic Bloc so that the matter does not develop into an unfortunate event, following the deterioration of Representative Samia Abbou's health condition.

Regarding the future of the Mishichi government in relation to the changes taking place between the parliamentary blocs, Al-Qoumani emphasized that his party interacts with the government track in the context of the balances within the parliament, stressing that Ennahdha remains a component among other party components of the government political belt.

A brutal hunger strike


and a statement issued by the Democratic Current Party confirmed that its deputies raised the sit-in and a brutal hunger strike after the Speaker of Parliament issued a statement condemning the Dignity Coalition bloc and holding it responsible for the attack on its representatives.

The Democratic Current Party condemned the delay of the Speaker of Parliament in issuing a statement of condemnation, blaming him for the deterioration in the health of the hunger strikers, and for the deviation of the parliament’s work, as he put it.

The leader of the Democratic Movement, Muhammad Al-Arabi Al-Jelsi, admitted in his speech to Al-Jazeera Net, what he called Rashid Al-Ghannouchi's acquiescence to the pressures of his party's MPs, stressing that the statement of condemnation actually came under pressure, and after the movement's female deputies fought a brutal hunger strike.

He stressed that his party’s position on the speaker of Parliament and considering him a source of crisis within it remains constant, denying the accusations against his party in coordination with the Free Constitutional President Abeer Moussa, in relation to a new list to withdraw confidence from Ghannouchi.

With regard to the party’s relationship with the Mecheid government, Al-Jallasi stressed that their position in the opposition is principled, considering that the current government's relationship with the parliamentary belt is based on political blackmail and barter.