APPREHENDED
- Full name: Ezzedine Ben Guennaoui Ben Mohammed Abdellaoui
- Pseudonym: N/a
- Alternatives: N/a
- Location: Tunisia
- Affiliation: Brigade of Uqba Bin Nafa’a [KUIN], fmr Partisans of Shari’a in Tunisia [AST]
Ezzedine Abdellaoui (°1975) is a Tunisian jihadi and former police officer who was kicked out of the force for his links to Islamists in 1998.1 He was connected to several jihadi entities over the following years. Tunisian authorities arrested him in 2003 and 2005.2 A few years later, Abdellaoui was linked to the Soldiers of Asad Ibn al-Furat [JAIF; Jund al-Asad Ibn al-Furat].3 The extent of his involvement with the outfit was never revealed.
In March 2011, Abdellaoui joined the Partisans of Shari’a in Tunisia [AST; Ansar Achariaâ].4 He soon became a key operative of the movement’s covert military wing. Abdellaoui reportedly procured weapons for the AST.5 He was one of the instigators of the November 2012 confrontations between AST supporters and security forces in the Douar Hicher suburb of Tunis.6 In 2013, Abdellaoui helped prepare and execute the assassinations of two left-wing politicians. He personally participated in the February 2013 killing of socialist member of parliament Chokri Belaïd.7 Abdellaoui was also involved in thwarted plans to assassinate a politician linked to the former regime and a journalist.8
Abdellaoui was also tied to the Brigade of Uqba Bin Nafa’a [KUIN; Katibat Uqba Ibn Nafaâ]. He reportedly transferred weapons to KUIN fighters based on Mount Chaâmbi.9 Abdellaoui was furthermore involved in several of the group’s earliest operations, including the December 2012 gun battle with Tunisian security forces in which a national guardsman was killed.10
Police forces arrested Abdellaoui during an operation in the Ouardia suburb of Tunis on Aug. 04, 2013.11 In the summer of 2014, it was falsely rumored that he had been freed by the authorities.12 Abdellaoui was eventually made to stand trial. He disrupted proceedings by denying the legitimacy of the court and refusing to attend hearings. His case is still pending.13
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