“The head of Tripoli Military Council, Libyan Islamist Abdelhakim Belhadj, has masterminded and funded terrorist acts in Tunisia, including the assassination of Tunisian opponents Chokri Belaid and Mohamed Brahmi,” said political and human rights activist Tayeb Oguili, a member of the National Initiative for Uncovering the Truth about the Political Assassinations in Tunisia (NIUTPAT).

“The head of Tripoli Military Council, Libyan Islamist Abdelhakim Belhadj, has masterminded and funded terrorist acts in Tunisia, including the assassination of Tunisian opponents Chokri Belaid and Mohamed Brahmi,” said political and human rights activist Tayeb Oguili, a member of the National Initiative for Uncovering the Truth about the Political Assassinations in Tunisia (NIUTPAT).

In a press conference held on October 2, Oqaili disclosed a document released by the Ministry of Interior (MoI) on January 4, 2013 – one month prior to the assassination of Belaid – in which it alerted its regional directorates that Belhadj planned terrorist acts in Tunisia. It also stated that Belhadj, who had secretly entered Tunisian territory along with compatriot Salem Louar, maintained links with the Tunisian Ansar al-Sharia organization – which was later found to have been involved in Brahmi’s and Belaid’s assassination, and branded as a terrorist organization by Ennahda.

Oqaili presented a file that included a number of pictures and documents leaked from the MoI to support his statements and the results of research lasting at least seven months.

Ennahda’s links to Belhadj

“Based on reliable and accurate information, the MoI again deliberately concealed the truth by not disclosing that the Libyan side involved in training and arming Tunisian elements was the ‘Libyan Islamic Fighting Group’ led by its emir Abdelhakim Belhadj who participated in the Iraq War within the Abu Musab al-Zarqawi factions,” reads the NIUTPAT report.

The report also mentions that the Ennahda Movement has a close relationship with Belhadj, according to pictures of his recurrent meeting with its leaders, including Human Rights Minister, Samir Dilou, and Ennahda head, Rachid al-Ghannouchi.

Belhadj also participated as a guest of honor at Ennahda’s ninth Congress on July 22, 2012, where he delivered a speech before its leaders, including Rachid Ghannouchi, Ali Laarayedh, Meherzia Labidi, Abdellatif Mekki, and Sumaya Ghannouchi. In that speech, he assured the Ennahda leadership that the preliminary results of the elections in Libya would be in favor of those who served the ‘Ennahda project.’

Belhadj was also received as a guest of honor at the celebrations to mark the revolution’s second anniversary, organized by the Ennahda Movement Youth Office on December 23, 2012 in Tunis. The celebrations brought together prominent leaders of Ennahda, including the then justice minister, Noureddine Bhiri.

The report states that the MoI did not take any action against Belhadj, whether through prohibiting him from entering the country or arresting him to interrogate him. It also mentions that the MoI had been aware of Belhadj’s plans, which were later carried out by Ansar al-Sharia.

The report reveals that the government did not take the issue of terrorism seriously, and that an appropriate political decision was only made after it was too late, to the extent of collusion. It also discloses that since its rise to power, Ennahda has been vehemently denying its failure to contain Salafi jihadists, defending them and justifying their violence.

Contacted by Tunisian media, Belhadj denied having any connection with Ansar al-Sharia and other terrorist organizations or that he had secretly entered Tunisia. He said he maintained a good relationship with the Tunisians, and that he had entered the country more than once through the official entry points, and had always been a welcome visitor.

Ennahda denies and denounces

Prominent Ennahda leaders expressed reservation vis-à-vis the documents presented by Oqaili, while Human Rights Minister Samir Dilou described Oqaili as “a liar, fraudulent, irresponsible, and should have gone to court instead of leveling charges during press conferences.”

He said he presented evidence and photos confirming that the one who appeared with him in some photos was not Belhadj, but Jamal Sadawi, his lookalike.”

None of Ennahda’s leaders, like Rachid Ghannouchi, who appeared in a photo with Belhadj, has commented on the charges and Ennahda has not responded to the report’s content about Belhadj’s presence at  Ennahda’s ninth congress.

However, a statement was released by Ennahda’s Legal Office, describing the report as “serious accusations and baseless allegations amounting to crimes punishable by criminal law because they prejudice public security and jeopardize people’s safety.”

The statement also viewed those allegations as  “a distortion of facts, fraud, forgery, and an illusion of nonexistent crimes that prejudice homeland integrity,” as well as “a defamation of Ennahda and its leaders by leveling terrorism charges against them and attempting to charge them with Belaid and Brahmi’s assassination.”

The statement also stated that linking this to Belhadj was a clear attempt to harm political life and the country’s supreme interests. It appealed to the competent judicial authorities to “confront such fallacies which would in best scenarios undermine public security and civil peace.”

The judiciary investigates

On October 7, the magistrate of the Third Chamber of the Court of First Instance in Tunis heard the statements of Oqaili regarding the documents he presented at that press conference, about the assassination of Chokri Belaid. The hearing lasted about an hour, pending the completion of investigations.

Oqaili appeared before the judge following a claim by an Al-Mutawasit TV channel insider that Oqaili had handed over recordings about serious issues by Prisons and Reform Union General Secretary Walid Zarrouq. Oqaili however denied having received any recordings, suggesting that his documents were in the hands of the judiciary.

The MoI detained two security officers and two policemen on charges of leaking confidential documents.

“We may boycott dialogue”

As a reaction to the accusations leveled against Ennahda, Hamma Hammami of the Popular Front Party said they would consider whether or not they would resume dialogue with the Ennahda-led government.

Hammami stressed that the data and information revealed by Oqaili proved the inefficiency of the MoI and its security services to the extent of collusion regarding the assassination of Belaid and Brahmi. These documents and evidence, says Hammami, prove that the current government is one of terror and assassinations.

Hammami stated that after disclosing the facts about the assassinations, the National Salvation Front and the Popular Front would plan a series of moves and would fully mobilize their supporters through marches, protests and sit-ins to topple this implicated government.

“We knew that right from the beginning, but they said ‘Where is the proof?’ Here is the proof. Would you consider it?” says Lamis Brahmi, Mohamed Brahmi’s daughter.

“My father’s right will not be in vain, and we will not sit on our hands towards these traitors. The treacherous Brotherhood government must fall.”