Tunisian President sacks prime minister months before election

In a statement on Wednesday, Tunisian President Kais Saied announced the replacement of Prime Minister Ahmed Hachani with Kamel Madouri, who previously served as the social affairs minister since May, as reported by AFP.

Saied didn’t specify why Hachani was removed.

His dismissal came just hours after Hachani made a video address boasting of progress made on securing Tunisia’s food and energy needs, according to a report by Al Jazeera.

Hachani’s tenure lasted only a year, following the dismissal of his predecessor, Najla Bouden, also by Saied without a provided reason. 

This abrupt change occurs amid increasing international scrutiny of Saied’s governance, which has been criticized as anti-democratic since his election in 2019. In 2021, he dissolved parliament, rewrote the constitution limiting parliamentary powers, and ruled by decree.  

With the presidential election approaching in October, Saied faces allegations of arbitrary detention of political opponents and critics, with over 20 arrests since February 2023.

Amnesty International stated last month, "Violations that we thought part of Tunisia's past are becoming more and more discernible and systematic."

Saied is seeking another term but faces widespread malaise over persistent power and water outages that the government blames on draught. Saied blames the water outages on a conspiracy to thwart his re-election bid, according to Al Jazeera.