Tunisia, the northernmost country in Africa was thrown into further political turmoil on Sunday, after President Kais Saied said he was dissolving the country’s main legal body.
It is the latest in a series of moves which critics say are leading the country towards authoritarian rule.
But the head of the Supreme Judicial Council called the move illegal and said it would continue working.
The president accuses the judges of bias and corruption.
“Their place is not where they sit now, but where the accused stand,” Mr Saied said of the council members in his speech announcing the decision.
But the council said there was no legal framework to dissolve it.
Its members vowed to continue holding their seats on the independent body, which was set up in 2016 to guarantee the judiciary’s independence.
