APPREHENDED
- Full name: Ahmed el-Melki
- Pseudonym: “Soumali”
- Alternatives: N/a
- Location: Tunisia
- Affiliation: Partisans of Shari’a in Tunisia [AST]
Ahmed el-Melki is an upholsterer and a former member of the Partisans of Shari’a in Tunisia [AST; Asnar Achariaâ]. He developed close ties to the movement’s leader, Seifallah Ben Hassine.1 Over time, Melki became a key member of the AST’s covert armed wing.2 He reportedly helped prepare the February 2013 assassination of socialist leader Chokri Belaïd.3 Melki was also deeply involved in the murder of left-wing member of parliament Mohammed Brahim on Jul. 25, 2013.4 He helped plan further assassinations of Tunisian politicians, but the plots were abandoned as the authorities started to crack down on the AST in the summer of 2013.5 In September, the Tunisian government issued an arrest warrant for Melki.6
In early February 2014, Melki apparently evaded arrest in an operation by Tunisian security forces in the town of Roued.7 Seven militants were eliminated in the incident. The authorities apprehended him a few days later on Feb. 09 in Borj el-Ouzir.8 A Tunis court sentenced him to 24 years in prison on Feb. 21, 2017.9
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