A Tunisian judge has sentenced presidential candidate Ayachi Zammel to 20 months in prison on charges of falsifying and buying signatures required to file his candidacy, his lawyer told The National.
The decision by the Court of First Instance in Jendouba governorate follows the sentencing of two other candidates last month – Nizar Chaari and Karim Gharbi – on similar signature fraud charges. Lawyer Ramzi Jebabli said on Thursday that Mr Zammel also faces other charges in Jendouba in connection with the use and breach of voters' personal information, with the date of the next trial set for September 25.
Similar cases have been filed by Tunisian prosecutors against Mr Zammel in other governorates, including Siliana and Kairouan. However, judges at El Kef governorate's Court of First Instance on Thursday dismissed one case against him relating to election fraud charges.
Several members of Mr Zammel's electoral campaign team and Azimoun party are also facing charges. But unlike the others, Mr Zammel has been kept in pretrial detention since September 4.
Mohamed Tlili Mansri, a spokesman for Tunisia's Independent High Authority for Elections, told state-owned news agency TAP that Mr Zammel will remain in the race regardless of the prison sentence.
“This will have no impact on his current presence in the electoral race or on the overall electoral process,” Mr Mansri said.
He said judicial and electoral proceedings are separate and that the list of candidates already finalised cannot be overturned by a subsequent court ruling.
Lawyer Mr Jebabli also said the sentence will have no impact on Mr Zammel's election plans, adding that his defence team are confident he will be acquitted of all charges on appeal.
“We have considered all potential scenarios from the beginning and have already agreed that Ayachi Zammel will lead an electoral campaign from inside his cell,” he told The National.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
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HAEMOGLOBIN DISORDERS EXPLAINED
Thalassaemia is part of a family of genetic conditions affecting the blood known as haemoglobin disorders.
Haemoglobin is a substance in the red blood cells that carries oxygen and a lack of it triggers anemia, leaving patients very weak, short of breath and pale.
The most severe type of the condition is typically inherited when both parents are carriers. Those patients often require regular blood transfusions - about 450 of the UAE's 2,000 thalassaemia patients - though frequent transfusions can lead to too much iron in the body and heart and liver problems.
The condition mainly affects people of Mediterranean, South Asian, South-East Asian and Middle Eastern origin. Saudi Arabia recorded 45,892 cases of carriers between 2004 and 2014.
A World Health Organisation study estimated that globally there are at least 950,000 'new carrier couples' every year and annually there are 1.33 million at-risk pregnancies.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
