Tunisians protest President Saied's rule

Hundreds of Tunisians protested against President Kais Saied, accusing him of deepening authoritarian rule and stifling political competition two weeks before a presidential election.

Amid a heavy police presence, protesters for a second week marched along Tunis' main avenue, a focal point of 2011 "Arab Spring" revolution, chanting slogans including "The people want the fall of the regime" and "Out with dictator Saied".

The protest came after lawmakers proposed a bill to strip the administrative court of its authority to adjudicate electoral disputes, a move that the opposition says would discredit the Oct. 6 election, and pave the way for Saied to secure a second term.

Political tensions in the North African country have risen since an electoral commission named by Saied disqualified three prominent presidential candidates, Mondher Znaidi, Abdellatif Mekki and Imed Daimi.

The commission defied the administrative court, the highest judicial body in election-related disputes, and allowed only two candidates to run against Saied.

One of them, Ayachi Zammel, is in jail after being sentenced to 20 months in prison for falsifying signatures on election paperwork in what he calls a politically motivated case.

Saied, who was democratically elected in 2019, has tightened his grip on power and began ruling by decree in 2021 in a move the opposition has described as a coup.

A proposal by Tunisian lawmakers to transfer the authority for overseeing elections from the administrative court to the appeals court sparked protests.

Ahead of the Oct. 6 presidential election, 34 deputies submitted the proposal, prompting human rights groups and right-wing and liberal parties to organize demonstrations in the capital, Tunis.

Protesters on Habib Bourguiba Avenue chanted slogans like "No to dictatorship, no to oppression," demanding transparent elections and criticizing judicial interference.