A Tunisian court sentenced 16 people to death in the first judgments against militants involved in 2016 attacks near the Libyan border that left scores dead, media reported Saturday.
A total of 96 people stand accused in the trial relating to the March 2016 events that saw the town of Ben Guerdane become the stage of a bloody battle as members of the Islamic State group’s Libya branch staged a series of deadly attacks.
The court specialised in terrorism offences handed 16 of the defendants Tunisia’s toughest sentence, though the country has imposed a moratorium on capital punishment since 1991.
The remaining defendants were handed sentences ranging from four years to life in prison, though a small but unspecified number of defendants were acquitted, the reports said.
The prosecution said it would appeal.
