Maghreb Edition

Tunisia: UN-Tunisia feud over arrest of UN expert for alleged espionage

Posted On 15 May 2019

Number of times this article was read : 210

Tunis, May 16, 2019 – Tunisia on Thursday rejected a United Nations claim that an arms expert arrested in the North African country has diplomatic immunity and should be released. Moncef Kartas, a member of the UN panel of experts on Libya, is a Tunisian-German dual national who was detained on arrival in Tunis on March 26. The world body has reviewed case documents from Tunisian authorities and on Wednesday called for the charges to be dropped, making clear the files were unconvincing.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric called for Kartas’s immediate release and stated the expert holds diplomatic immunity, a claim rejected by Tunisia on Thursday. Kartas “does not have immunity, he entered Tunisia with his Tunisian passport, and (the allegations) are not within the framework of his work at the UN,” said Sofiene Sliti, spokesman for anti-terror prosecutors. The UN expert is being prosecuted for having “collected information in relation to terrorism unofficially, which constitutes a dangerous crime,” said Sliti.

The case files include “material used to check civil and military aviation, the use of which requires official authorisation,” he added. Kartas’s lawyers have said that the charges were linked to the arms expert’s possession of a device allowing him to have access to data on flights of civil and commercial aircraft. His panel of experts investigates allegations of violations of the arms embargo and other sanctions imposed on Libya. It has reported that arms and ammunition deliveries continue to reach warring parties despite the UN embargo — with the involvement of member states. Libya, which borders Tunisia, has seen an uptick in violence since
commander Khalifa Haftar launched an offensive on April 4 to take the capital Tripoli from the UN-recognised government.

By AFP
Previous article on the subject:
May 15, 2019 – The United Nations on Wednesday rejected Tunisia’s reasons for the arrest in March of a UN expert on suspicion of espionage and demanded that charges against him be dropped.  Tunisia had submitted documents to the United Nations detailing the case against Moncef Kartas, a member of the UN panel of experts on Libya, who was detained on arrival in Tunis on March 26. After reviewing the documents, the UN formally notified Tunisia’s government that Kartas enjoys diplomatic immunity and “requested Mr Kartas’ immediate release and for the charges against him to be dropped,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
The United Nations “remains very concerned by the continued detention and prosecution” of Kartas, a Tunisian-German dual national who has been a member of the panel since 2016.  The spokesman declined to provide details on the documents submitted by Tunisia, but made clear that the contents were unconvincing.
In mid-April, the world body had asked Tunisia to provide the reasons for his arrest, in line with its international legal obligations. Kartas’ lawyers have said that the charges were linked to the arms expert’s possession of a device allowing him to have access to data on flights of civil and commercial aircraft.  The panel of experts investigates allegations of violations of the arms embargo and other sanctions imposed on Libya.
On April 4, Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar launched an operation to seize the capital Tripoli from the UN-recognized government.  The panel has reported that arms and ammunition deliveries continue to reach warring parties despite the UN embargo — with the involvement of member states.
By AFP
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