The Tunisian Bar Association has issued a stern warning, today, of a potential boycott against the International Bar Association (IBA) due to the latter’s silence regarding Israeli attacks on Palestinian civilians. Hatem Mziou, the head of Tunisian lawyers, condemned the ongoing events in Palestine, particularly in Gaza, referring to them as “racist extermination and a humanitarian disaster against a besieged people without food or health supplies.” He criticized the lack of action from Western leaders and their complete silence in support of these actions. Mziou emphasized the “need for a firm stance against certain ambassadors and the urgent issuance of a law criminalizing normalization,” praising Tunisian President Kais Saied’s support for the Tunisian people in this context. He called on Saied to take a decisive stance against ambassadors of countries cooperating with Israel and urged the swift enactment of a law criminalizing normalization.
Hatem Mziou’s statements come as part of five messages he delivered during a “Day of Anger” speech at the Palace of Justice in Kasbah. He announced that he would boycott the International Bar Association if it did not correct its stance, which is inappropriate given the situation in Palestine and its silence regarding the martyrdom of 24 Palestinian lawyers.
Earlier, the Israeli army’s radio station reported that “Israeli ground forces carried out a relatively major incursion into the Gaza Strip during the night.” The radio station clarified that “the purpose of the ground operation conducted by Israeli forces is to attack Hamas positions in the Gaza Strip,” noting that “this is the largest operation in the Gaza Strip over the past two weeks.”
Tensions continue to escalate between the Palestinian movement “Hamas” and Israeli forces following the launch of “Operation Al-Aqsa Storm” by Hamas on Saturday, October 7th. Thousands of rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel, and its forces entered Israeli settlements adjacent to the Gaza Strip, capturing a significant number of Israeli military personnel and civilians.