A group of activists in Tunisia including lawyers and journalists have filed a petition in court to bar Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) from visiting their country. This is in protest over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
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According to Bloomberg “a group of lawyers have petitioned a court to bar him from the country, whose 2011 revolt against President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali inspired the Arab Springs uprisings. Tunisian’s Journalists Syndicate has also issued a statement condemning the visit. They have labelled the Crown Prince a ‘true enemy of free expression’.
MBS began a tour of Arab countries on Thursday. This is his first trip aboard since Khashoggi’s murder at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2. The protesting group says that by visiting Tunisia, Bin Salman aims to get out of his isolation following the widespread criticism he has faced on charges of involvement in the assassination of the journalist. Tunisian’s have even taken to the social media to express their objection on the Prince’s visit.
The protests are casting a shadow on Saudi Arabia’s efforts to move beyond the Khashoggi murder, and continue with business as usual.
