{"id":58142,"date":"2023-04-15T19:35:40","date_gmt":"2023-04-15T19:35:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2023\/04\/15\/tunisia-footballer-dies-after-setting-himself-on-fire\/"},"modified":"2023-04-15T19:35:40","modified_gmt":"2023-04-15T19:35:40","slug":"tunisia-footballer-dies-after-setting-himself-on-fire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2023\/04\/15\/tunisia-footballer-dies-after-setting-himself-on-fire\/","title":{"rendered":"Tunisia footballer dies after setting himself on fire"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Tunisian footballer, Nizar Issaoui has died from burns sustained in a protest against \u201cpolice injustice\u201d, his family said, in which he set himself on fire.<\/p>\n

He had appeared in a video posted online showing him shouting that he had been accused of terrorism by officers after a dispute with a fruit seller.<\/p>\n

In a separate post, he said he sentenced himself to \u201cdeath by fire\u201d.<\/p>\n

There were angry clashes at the funeral of the 35-year-old on Friday in his home town of Haffouz, local media reported.<\/p>\n

Issaoui had been accused of terrorism by police officers after he complained that he was unable to buy bananas for less than 10 dinars ($3.30; \u00a32.66) a kilogram, double the price set by the government, reports say.<\/p>\n

In a Facebook post, the footballer had written: \u201cFor a dispute with someone selling bananas at 10 dinars, I get accused of terrorism at the police station. Terrorism for a complaint about bananas\u2026 I have no more energy. Let the police state know that the sentence will be executed today.\u201d<\/p>\n

In protest, Issaoui burned himself to death.<\/p>\n

Violence erupted at the footballer\u2019s funeral as demonstrators threw stones at police who fired tear gas.<\/p>\n

He was a former player for the Tunisian top-flight side US Monastir and a father of four.<\/p>\n

His brother told local reporters that Issauoi suffered third-degree burns and doctors were not able to save his life.<\/p>\n

His action was an echo of a 2010 protest when street vendor Mohamed Bouazizi set himself alight. That kicked off a wave of demonstrations that led to the overthrow of President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali the following year.<\/p>\n

The current President, Kais Saied, sparked controversy in 2021 when he sacked the prime minister and suspended parliament. He has since pushed through a new constitution enshrining his dominance.<\/p>\n

The Tunisian government has not commented on Issaoui\u2019s death.<\/p>\n

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