Lawyers Withdraw from the Trial for ex-Tunisian leader

Lawyers for Tunisia’s ousted president  Ben Ali withdrew from his trial in absentia on drugs and weapons charges on Monday, saying their client was not being treated fairly.

Ex-Tunisian leader Ben Ali’s ouster in January after weeks of protest inspired uprisings elsewhere in the Arab world. The former leader, who is in Saudi Arabia for the time being, has already been sentenced to 35 years in prison on other charges. At Monday’s hearing, one of his lawyers, Husni Beji, asked the judge for a delay so that he could persuade Ben Ali to return to Tunisia to face trial. Judge Touhami Hafian refused to grant the petition.