The attempted suicide of a Tunisian migrant in an Italian prison has sparked controversy over the abuses faced by Tunisian migrants in that country.
Majdi al-Karbai, a former MP and migrant activist, posted a video of a young Tunisian trying to “hang himself” in a detention and deportation centre to protest the Italian authorities’ attempt to return him home.
Deportions of Tunisian migrants have increased in recent years following the memorandum of understanding Tunisia signed last year with the European Union, which includes funding to combat illegal immigration, he said.
“The difficult humanitarian situation inside detention and deportation centres, the suffering of Tunisian migrants, suicide attempts and daily attacks, and President Kais Saied receives millions of euros in order to accept deportees and remain silent about these abuses,” al-Karbai said.
In February, a Tunisian prisoner filed a legal complaint against 10 Italian policemen for torture.
Last year, a 39-year-old Tunisian committed suicide in the Chiavari prison in the northern Italian city of Genoa, where he was serving a prison sentence that expires in 2026.
Earlier, al-Karbai revealed that Tunisian migrants were subjected to sexual abuse, as well as exploited in organized crime inside Italy, noting that they live in difficult and inhumane conditions in shelters, deportation, and detention centers.
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