Tunis — A Tunisian military court sentenced on Thursday former president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, his former interior minister and his former security chief as well as 38 other security officials to up to 20 years in jail over the deaths of protesters during the January 14, 2011 Revolution in the governorates of Greater Tunis, Bizerte, Zaghouan, Nabeul and Sousse.
The ousted president was sentenced to life imprisonment in absentia, his security chief Ali Sériati to 20 years and former interior minister Rafik Belhaj Kacem to 15 years in jail.
Other security officials were handed jail terms of one year, five years, 10 years, 12 years, 15 years and 20 years, but the charges were dropped against former interior minister Ahmed Friaa who had been named shortly before Ben Ali fled, and against some other officials.
The sentences caused stormy protests in the court room from members of the victims' families as well as relatives of the convicts.
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