Tunisia: Kais Saied extends state of emergency until December 2026

Renewed without interruption since 2015, the state of emergency continues to shape the political and security life of the country.

Tunisian President Kais Saied has decided to extend the state of emergency across the entire country from January 31 to December 3, 2026 , by presidential decree . This measure is part of an exceptional continuity: the state of emergency has been in effect without interruption since November 24, 2015 , for more than ten years.

A system inherited from a security trauma

A state of emergency was declared following the deadly attack on a presidential guard bus in the heart of Tunis , the capital. The attack killed 12 members of the security forces and injured 16 others , including officers and civilians. At the time, Tunisia was facing a wave of terrorist attacks that had deeply shocked the public and destabilized its institutions.

Since then, the exceptional measures have been regularly renewed, becoming a permanent security management tool . It grants the authorities expanded powers: restrictions on movement, bans on gatherings, house arrest and strengthening of the prerogatives of law enforcement.

Security, governance and public freedoms

Under the presidency of Kaïs Saïed, the extension of the state of emergency comes in a tense political context, marked by a centralization of executive power and a redefinition of the country's institutional functioning. The authorities justify these measures by the persistence of security threats and the need to preserve national stability.

Conversely, civil society actors and international observers are concerned about the normalization of the state of emergency , highlighting the lasting effects on civil liberties, the right to protest, and democratic balance. For them, the security emergency is tending to become the political norm.

An exception that is likely to last?

The new deadline set for December 2026 raises questions about the future of the Tunisian legal framework. Ten years after its implementation, the state of emergency appears less as a one-off response to a crisis than as a sustainable mode of governance in a country still facing major economic, social, and security challenges.

In Tunisia, the issue is no longer just one of security, but of the boundary between protecting the state and preserving freedoms , a central debate that now goes beyond purely security considerations.