Lawyers stage general strike, detention warrant issued for Dahmani [Upd 1]

Tunis: Lawyers Monday staged a general strike in courts nationwide, in compliance with the decision Sunday of the board of the Tunisian National Bar Association, in the wake of a "raid" by security forces on Saturday night on the Lawyers' House in Tunis to enforce the arrest warrant against lawyer Sonia Dahmani.The investigating judge issued Monday a detention warrant for Dahmani, lawyer Nidhal Salhi told TAP. The decision was made without hearing Dahmani which, he added, "is a first in the history of the lawyer profession in Tunisia."A large number of lawyers gathered, Monday morning, outside the Tunis Court of First Instance where they chanted slogans calling for the independence of the judiciary amid a confrontation between the security forces and the lawyers.A press conference will be held by the president of the bar association, on Tuesday, while others protests are scheduled for next Thursday in courts nationwide.Lawyers also gathered in front of the Beb Bnet Court of First Instance where journa lists were prevented from covering the protest.The arrest warrant issued by the first investigating judge at the Tunis Court of First Instance against Sonia Dahmani was implemented on Saturday evening.Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse