Heatwave worsens prison conditions as Rached Ghannouchi faints in Tunisia

A severe heatwave has intensified conditions at Mornaguia prison in Tunisia, where jailed opposition leader Rached Ghannouchi was seen temporarily losing consciousness during a visit on Tuesday, according to a witness. The account came from Haifa Chebbi, the daughter of imprisoned opposition politician Ahmed Nejib Chebbi, who said she saw the 85-year-old former parliament speaker faint in the stifling heat. She described the prison environment as so extreme that she herself struggled to breathe and walk by the time she left.

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Chebbi said temperatures inside the facility reached 52C during her visit, while detainees were said to spend most of their time in cells no larger than 16 square metres and were allowed only two hours outside each day. Her remarks were made in a live video posted after the visit, and she said she did not blame prison staff, adding that they were doing what they could under difficult circumstances. She also said elderly prisoners were receiving special attention, but that the conditions remained severe.

Ghannouchi, the leader of the Ennahda political movement and a former speaker of parliament, has been held since 2023. He was rushed to hospital on 30 April after a sharp deterioration in his health, but has since returned to Mornaguia prison. The latest account adds to concern over the treatment of older detainees held there during the summer heat, with Chebbi saying several prisoners are spending their fourth summer behind bars.

The incident comes against the backdrop of Tunisia's increasingly authoritarian political climate and the imprisonment of several opposition figures. Ahmed Nejib Chebbi helped establish the National Salvation Front in 2022, a coalition of secular, liberal and Islamist groups opposed to President Kais Saied's rule. He was among 37 opposition figures charged in 2025 with conspiracy against state security and later sentenced to 12 years in prison.

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The case has also drawn international criticism. United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk described the imprisonment of the 37 defendants as a setback to justice and the rule of law. He said the process was marred by violations of fair trial and due process rights, raising serious concerns about political motivations.

Those concerns now sit alongside questions about prison conditions, especially for elderly inmates held during extreme summer temperatures. What remains unclear is whether Ghannouchi required further medical treatment after the episode and whether prison authorities will respond to the reported conditions inside Mornaguia. The witness account has not been independently verified in the supplied material, and no official prison statement was included.

The situation is likely to remain under scrutiny because it combines allegations of political repression with immediate concerns over detainee welfare and heat-related risk.

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