British writer David Hurst says that the "coup" of Tunisian President Kais Saied will have his days numbered, due to the opposition of Western countries as well as his powerful neighbor Algeria, in addition to Turkey, despite the support he finds from Egypt and the UAE.
And Hurst reported
in an article on the
British "Middle East Eye" website that this "coup" is losing momentum and does not get the support it needs to run the country, and wider and broader circles of Tunisians at home are now aware of those who run the state, government and judiciary. .
He added that outside financial support for Kais Saied is unlikely, which is important for a small, bankrupt country like Tunisia, which cannot pay its huge public sector wage bill and owes an external debt of $6 billion due this year alone.
clear western demands
Hearst quoted Tunisian and Italian sources that ambassadors from Germany, Italy and the United States asked the Tunisian president to restore parliament as soon as possible, and that the Americans prevented him from organizing a mass rally in favor of seizing power, and they all conveyed messages of support to Rached Ghannouchi, Speaker of Parliament and Head of the Ennahda Party, in addition to other party leaders.
The writer said that Saeed may be inclined to ignore all this, now that he believes that he has assurances from Egypt and the UAE that they will finance him, "but before accepting these financial promises as real, he should ask the Sudanese about their experience with such promises."
Algeria is more important
He explained that it was Algeria that Saied should be most concerned about.
Tunisia is a small country with big neighbors, "neither Egypt nor the Emirates, who organized and financed this coup, respectively" are among the neighbors that the Tunisian president should worry about.
Hearst: Egypt and the UAE organized and financed the "coup" (French)
"Algeria considers Tunisia its backyard and gateway to Tripoli, and it has a clear regional interest in the events in both Tunisia and Libya. After the Emiratis failed in Libya, they are now trying to achieve the same goals in Tunisia, or at least that's how the Algerians see it," he said.
Hearst quoted an Algerian source - who described him as high - as saying, "This coup has no prospect of success. We asked Kais Saied to negotiate with Ghannouchi, and we know exactly how the Egyptians and Emiratis carried out this coup. We do not want to see another Haftar in Tunisia. We do not want to see a government in Tunisia affiliated with it." to these powers.
The Turkish government is also concerned about the events in Tunisia, not least due to the feeling that the recent détente between Egypt and the UAE with Ankara could be a ploy to distract Turkey from the real action, which was a move against Tunisia.
But in Tunis, says Hearst, Said does not listen, and Italian diplomats complain that he does not understand that democracy is pluralistic, nor is it a matter of being a populist leader against MPs whom he accuses of corruption.
Against democracy, pluralism and parties
Hurst pointed out that in 2019, when Saeed was a presidential candidate and talking about corruption, he gave an interview in which he spoke openly about his plans.
When asked to describe his electoral platform, Said replied, "I have proposed a project for years for a new institution...There must be a new political thought and a new constitutional text."
Said added - in that interview - that if he wins the presidency, he will get rid of the legislative elections, noting that "parliamentary democracy in Western countries is bankrupt and its time is over... Look at what is happening in France with the yellow jackets and in Algeria and Sudan, the parties are destined to become extinct. Their era is over... It may take some time for them to die, but surely in a few years, their role will be over. Pluralism will die out on its own.. We have entered a new era in history. This is the new revolution."
Then the interviewer asked him, "Is the problem with the parties or with Tunisians who don't read?"
Saeed replied, "The problem is the parties. Their role is over."
He also expressed his clear intention to clamp down on civil society organizations in Tunisia, noting that he has "a project aimed at ending support for all societies, whether from inside Tunisia or from abroad because they are used as a means of interfering in our affairs."
Hirst concluded his article by saying that if Said does not listen, more and more Tunisians around him will be harmed by his style of governance. This is not just a battle against a totalitarian president or an Islamist-dominated parliament, Tunisians are now wondering where Said Tunis will lead them.