Tunisian authorities summoned French Ambassador Anne Gueguen on Friday, July 24, exacerbating the international isolation of President Kais Saied’s administration as it struggles to contain mounting domestic anger over widespread infrastructure failures.
The diplomatic friction was triggered by French public broadcaster France 24 airing two interviews with former Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki, who currently lives in exile in France. Marzouki, sentenced in absentia in Tunisia to several years in prison, sharply criticized Saied’s concentration of executive authority, warning that the country faces a political crisis of exceptional gravity that could lead to widespread civil unrest.
The diplomatic spat coincides with a severe domestic crisis, as two consecutive weeks of intense heat with temperatures soaring past 40°C triggered unprecedented water and electricity blackouts across the nation. The compounding service disruptions have fueled public outrage, culminating in street demonstrations in downtown Tunis on July 25—marking exactly five years since Saied consolidated political power. Analysts view the decision to summon the French ambassador as a clear signal of the regime’s increasingly defensive posture against foreign scrutiny while internal economic pressures and political opposition continue to escalate.
MK/Sf/fss/abj/APA
