Advisers to Rached Ghannouchi, the Speaker of the Tunisian Parliament and leader of the Ennahda Islamist party, stated that Ghannouchi left the hospital he had entered earlier on Sunday, amid a significant political crisis in the country. Ghannouchi, who has played an influential role in the country for a decade, opposed the measures taken by Tunisian President Kais Saied last week to seize governing powers, dismiss the Prime Minister, and suspend the Parliament’s activities, quickly labeling them as a coup.
The advisers did not specify the health issue that Ghannouchi (80 years old) is facing; he had been hospitalized for a week last month for treatment of COVID-19. One adviser said, "After hours at the military hospital, Ghannouchi returned home and is now fine."
The Ennahda movement suffered repression until the 2011 revolution, which brought about democracy, and has since become the strongest political party, supporting successive government coalitions, and contributing to the agreement on the 2014 Constitution. However, factors such as economic stagnation, deteriorating services, and a growing perception of widespread corruption have affected the party's support rates, and it appears that President Saied's announcement last week has garnered broad support.
Ghannouchi is facing discontent within Ennahda regarding his handling of the current crisis and his strategic choices since the 2019 elections. Senior members of the Ennahda movement view the current crisis as the biggest challenge the movement has faced since 2011, and a growing number of party members have called for Ghannouchi to resign. Ghannouchi had postponed a meeting of the party's Shura Council on Friday.
