Ghannouchi accuses the Tunisian president of “overturning the revolution and the constitution.”
Rashid Ghannouchi: "We made a mistake when we thought we could do everything in one year."
Tunisian Parliament Speaker Rached Ghannouchi accused President Kais Saied of "a coup against the revolution and the constitution", after the president announced the freezing of parliament and the dismissal of the prime minister.
"We consider the institutions still standing, and the supporters of Ennahda and the Tunisian people will defend the revolution," Ghannouchi said.
Ghannouchi's accusations come after Tunisian President Kais Saied said, on Sunday, that he had decided to freeze the parliament's work, suspend the immunity of all parliamentarians, and dismiss Prime Minister Hisham Al-Mashishi, against the backdrop of violent protests that took place in several cities.
The president added that he will take over the executive branch with the help of a new prime minister.
Saied announced these measures under Article 80 of the constitution, after an emergency meeting at the Carthage Palace.
The police forces closed most of the entrances to the parliament headquarters in Bardo, and the streets of the capital, including the main street, Habib Bourguiba, witnessed an intense security deployment.
Hundreds succeeded in reaching the streets near the parliament, chanting slogans such as "the people want to overthrow the regime" and "the people want the parliament to be dissolved", and "there is no fear, no terror. The power is in the hands of the people."
They also chanted slogans against the "Ennahda" party, the largest party in the country, and engaged in skirmishes with the police forces.
Similar rallies were also held in other regions of the country, including Sfax, Gafsa, Sousse, Kairouan and Tozeur.
Video clips in Tozeur and El Kef showed protesters storming the headquarters of the "Ennahda" party, while others in Sousse removed the party's banner from the front of the headquarters, and in Sfax, the police chased protesters in the streets and fired tear gas.
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