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Tunisia: trial of Ben Ali collaborators postponed

02 August 2011 22:45 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. A Tunisian court has granted a defense request to postpone the trial of 23 relatives and close collaborators of ousted Tunisian dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali for about a week, APA reports quoting news.yahoo.com webpage.
The defendants face charges including illegal possession of foreign currency, jewelry trafficking and attempted flight. If convicted, they could be sentenced to up to five years in prison and face hefty fines.
The defendants include Ben Ali’s security chief, Ali Seriati.
The trial began last month but judges have twice granted defense requests seeking to postpone the proceedings, with the hearings now set to resume next Wednesday.
Ben Ali and some of his relatives fled into exile in Saudi Arabia on Jan. 14 amid street protests.