TUNIS: Four Tunisians have been arrested after Turkiye’s red-and-white flag, which bears a strong resemblance to Tunisia’s but is not the same, was raised atop a government building, local media said Wednesday.
Footage circulated online in recent days showed the Turkish flag flying over the Tunis headquarters of the national railway company SNCFT, prompting a formal apology and arrests.
The two flags have the same colors and both bear the Islamic symbols of a star and crescent, with the most noticeable difference being a white circle on the Tunisian one.
SNCFT on Tuesday announced it had removed the wrong flag, apologizing in a statement for the mix-up and saying an investigation had been launched.
It said the Turkish flag had been purchased by mistake, and that staff “didn’t notice until it was raised.”
The blunder did not go unnoticed on social media, and on Wednesday Mosaique FM radio and other Tunisian news outlets said four railway workers had been arrested.
The media reports did not elaborate on the identities of those arrested or the charges they may face.
In May, the covering of the national flag at a sporting event in Tunis, due to sanctions from the World Anti-Doping Agency, led to the arrests of three officials.
The sports officials faced charges including “attack on the flag of Tunisia” and “plot against the internal security” of the state, and were released last week after a three-month sentence.
The incident had provoked outrage from Tunisian President Kais Saied, who has been readying for elections next month which he is widely expected to win.
Photos from the May flag incident showed Kais in tears during a visit to the venue.
Tunisia flag blunder lands 4 behind bars
https://arab.news/2a7bu
Tunisia flag blunder lands 4 behind bars
- Footage circulated online in recent days showed the Turkish flag flying over the Tunis headquarters of the national railway company SNCFT
- It said the Turkish flag had been purchased by mistake, and that staff “didn’t notice until it was raised“
Morocco rolls out emergency aid during harsh winter weather
- A red alert was issued on Tuesday for snowfall of up to 80 cm (31 inches) in the High Atlas mountains and an orange alert was issued for rainfall of up to 50 mm across most of central and northern regions
RABAT: Morocco rolled out nationwide emergency aid to help tens of thousands of families affected by freezing temperatures, heavy rain and snow this winter, authorities said on Tuesday.
Flash floods following torrential rain killed 37 people in the coastal province of Safi on Sunday, damaging some 70 homes and shops in the old town, sweeping away cars and cutting roads. The relief operation will target 28 provinces affected by freezing temperatures, snow and rainfall with food supplies and blankets to be distributed to around 73,000 households, the authorities said.
A red alert was issued on Tuesday for snowfall of up to 80 cm (31 inches) in the High Atlas mountains and an orange alert was issued for rainfall of up to 50 mm across most of central and northern regions.
In the mountains of Ouarzazate, about 500 km (310 miles) southeast of the capital Rabat, snow has reached a depth of 50 cm and temperatures have dropped below zero at night.
Morocco is experiencing heavy rain and snowfall after seven years of drought that emptied some of its main reservoirs.
