The Tunisian Court of Cassation on Thursday began hearing the final appeal of the so-called “conspiracy case”, in which dozens of opposition figures are accused of plotting against the state. In November, 34 defendants, many of them critics of President Kais Saied, were sentenced to up to 45 years in prison in an appeal trial in the case that has been sharply criticised by rights groups. A small demonstration gathered Thursday morning outside the courthouse in support of the defendants, an AFP journalist reported. On Wednesday lawyer and opposition figure Dalila Msaddek, whose brother Jawhar Ben Mbarek is on trial, condemned the proceedings, calling them nothing more than “the blatant implementation of political instructions”. Among the defendants in the mass trial were party leaders Issam Chebbi and Ghazi Chaouachi, as well as businessman Kamel Ltaief. Amnesty International has urged Tunisian authorities to “rectify a travesty of justice that has upturned the lives of 34 prominent opposition figures, human rights defenders and lawyers who were convicted on unfounded charges”. Kais Saied was elected in 2019 after Tunisia emerged as the only democracy of the Arab Spring. But in 2021, he staged a sweeping power grab, and human rights groups have since criticised a major rollback on freedoms.