On November 25, 2022, Khaled was approached by three individuals in civilian clothing who asked him to accompany them, informing him that they were police officers, without presenting any official identification. When Khaled refused their request, they directed a series of threats and intimidation at him before leaving the scene.

The following day, a formal summons was issued to Khaled Bouzaiene by the judicial police brigade, without specifying the reason. When he went to inquire about the grounds for the summons, he was arrested. It later became clear that his detention was based on Facebook posts he had published on his personal page, in which he criticized President Kais Saied and the ruling political system.

According to his lawyer, Khaled’s arrest was carried out under Decree-Law No. 54 of 2022, dated September 13, 2022, concerning the fight against crimes related to information and communication systems. After his arrest, Khaled was brought before the Investigating Judge at the Court of First Instance in Kef, then placed in pre-trial detention and imprisoned.

He was charged with committing an “outrage against the President of the Republic” and “conspiracy against the internal security of the State” under Articles 67 and 72 of the Tunisian Penal Code.

Since November, Khaled remained in detention for two months without the court scheduling a hearing or issuing a ruling in his case, despite the issuance of a decision closing the investigation. As a result, Khaled informed his lawyer and friends that he had decided to go on hunger strike if the court did not promptly schedule a hearing and rule on his case.

Subsequently, a hearing was scheduled. According to his lawyer’s testimony to Intersection Association for Rights and Freedoms, the judge sentenced Khaled to two months in prison, taking into account the time he had already served. However, she maintained that the appropriate ruling should have been a dismissal of the case due to the lack of legal elements constituting the alleged offense. Instead, the judge reclassified the charges and convicted Khaled of “insulting others or disturbing their peace through public telecommunications networks” under Article 86 of the Penal Code, sentencing him to two months’ imprisonment.