BRUSSELS: The European Union on Saturday condemned the sentencing of Sihem Bensedrine, one of Tunisia’s best-known opposition figures, and urged the authorities to restore pluralism in the country where the Arab Spring began. The 75-year-old activist was sentenced to 25 years in prison on charges of abuse of office and forgery, which NGOs have condemned as politically motivated.

The IVD, set up after the 2011 revolution ousted longtime ruler Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, heard testimony from thousands of his victims and those of his predecessor Habib Bourguiba.

TUNIS: Prominent Tunisian rights activist Sihem Bensedrine told AFP on Friday that she had been sentenced to 25 years in prison on charges including falsifying part of a…