Tunisian MP critical of president arrested by security forces

Yassin Ayari’s wife says he was violently arrested by about 20 men who said they were presidential security members.

Tunisian security forces arrested a member of parliament at his home, his wife and lawyer said, after he criticised President Kais Saied on Facebook and called his seizure of governing powers a “coup”. Yassin Ayari, who represents a small party in Parliament, has previously expressed frequent criticism of Saied, who on Sunday dismissed the prime minister, froze Parliament for a month and said he was taking over executive authority. Neither the security forces nor the judiciary were immediately available for comment on Ayari’s arrest.