President Caid Essebsi: “2017 will be year of economic recovery and growth”

President Beji Caid Essebsi stressed that the new year 2017 “will be the year of economic recovery and achievement of a substantial growth rate”, while qualifying as “difficult in many respects the year 2016 “. Conveying his wishes for the New Year to the Tunisian people on Saturday evening, the Head of State said the year that passed saw “nevertheless successes, including the battle won against terrorism in Ben Guerdane, the conclusion of the Carthage Document which paved the way for the formation of a national unity government, as well…

Tunisia seeks to stimulate foreign investment

In 2016, Tunisia sought to stimulate foreign investment in order to revive the country’s economy, which has been stagnating for about 15 years. From 2005 to 2015, the country lost not less than 2,500 jobs per year due to the closure of about 400 companies each year. According to the Tunisian Agency for the Promotion of Industry and Innovation (APII), small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) are the most affected by this stagnation because of their lack of competitiveness, liquidity and financial market access. This has an immediate impact on the…

Mahdia, New Year celebration destination for 1,138 tourists

1,138 tourists had arrived so far to Mahdia for New Year celebrations, Regional Commissioner for Tourism Mohamed Boujdaria Friday told media. Arrivals, down 26% in comparison with 2015, are expected to increase. Visitors are mostly Tunisians (858) in addition to Germans, French and Czechs. The number of bednights up to December 20 rose 40% compared to the same period last year; the number of arrivals posted a 19.3% increase while the occupancy rate reached 50.3%. 167,000 tourists visited Mahdia in 2015; the number of bednights stood at 745,000, the Regional…

Return of Tunisians from hotbeds of tension: action plans and legal foundations

How has Tunisia prepared for the return of Tunisian terrorists from areas of tension? This is a controversial issue that has been widely echoed by the Tunisian and foreign media in recent weeks. Opinions are divided between those who oppose it arguing that this constitutes “a real danger to national and regional security” and those who defend the right of any Tunisian to return to his country, in accordance with the Constitution. For the latter, Tunisian terrorists returning to the country must be brought before the Tunisian justice. More than…

Italian prisons house 39 for terrorism, report says, four are women

Italian prisons currently house 39 people incarcerated for international terrorism, according to a report by Italy’s prison administration (DAP) on radicalisation and proselytism in Italian prisons, reviewed by ANSA on Friday. “Currently those detained in prison for the crime of international terrorism, among the 179 being tracked, are 39, of whom 3 have definitive convictions, 6 are defendants on appeal, 2 are defendants awaiting a decision by the high Court of Cassation, and 26 are defendants awaiting a first trial or sentencing,” the report said. The prisoners are being held…

New Year eve: Reservations of European market edge up in Djerba

Booking for the New Year holiday in Djerba and Zarzis edged up to reach 6 thousand and even more, Regional Tourism Commissioner Amel Hachani told TAP. The European market represents 80% of the reservations mainly divided between the French, German and Russian markets. Local tourism is decreasing after reaching 50% in 2015. This drop is caused by the change of the winter holiday’s date. The total number of entries and stays edged up by 50% during the September-November period. The Russian market attracted 220 thousand tourists since the start of…

Tunisia breaks up militant cell near Sousse

Tunisian security forces said Thursday that they had broken up an Al-Qaeda-linked militant cell with ten members that was active near the coastal city of Sousse. The interior ministry said in a statement that the group had used the Telegram encrypted messaging system to communicate with associates inside and outside Tunisia, and was plotting to carry out “terrorist operations”.. The cell had links to Okba Ibn Nafaa, an Al-Qaeda-linked group based in the Mount Chaambi range near the Algerian border that has claimed attacks against Tunisian security forces, the statement…

Germany targets migrants from North Africa

As Germans try to come to terms with the bloodiest attack on their country in decades, their government is focusing on toughening the deportation laws. Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives are eager to push through legislation, currently blocked by the opposition, that would declare Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria “safe countries of origin,” allowing authorities to easily reject asylum applications from nationals of those countries as “clearly unfounded.” Armin Laschet, deputy party chief of Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU,) said in an email that his party wants to see an end to this parliamentary blockade in…

Most Tunisians consider relations with EU good and would like it to play greater role, poll finds

Almost two thirds of Tunisians (64%) consider relations between the EU and their country good, while less than half of them (49%) have a positive image of the EU against 63% in the Maghreb region, according to the findings of a survey carried out in the framework of the EU-funded EU Neighbours South project. The majority of Tunisians would like the EU to play a greater role in their country in economic development (71%), trade (63%) and human rights (59%). 53% of respondents believe the EU is an important partner…

Tunisian man released after Berlin truck attack arrest

A Tunisian man detained on suspicion of involvement in last week’s Berlin truck attack has been released after investigators determined that he was not in contact with the main suspect immediately before the rampage. The 40-year-old was detained in Berlin on Wednesday. Federal prosecutors said at the time that his telephone number was saved in Anis Amri’s mobile and they suspected he might have been involved. Their spokeswoman Frauke Koehler said on Thursday that investigators had suspected Amri might have sent him a message and a picture over a messenger…