An investigation was opened after the death of four people who had consumed alcohol in Tunisia.
Four people died and more than 40 others were poisoned after consuming adulterated alcohol in southern Tunisia, we learned from judicial sources on Sunday. An investigation was opened to determine the circumstances of the facts, and the person who supplied the substance was arrested, Fethi Baccouche, spokesperson for the Medenine court (south), told AFP.
Analyzes are underway to determine the exact composition of the substance causing this massive poisoning. Of the forty people poisoned, a majority were able to leave the local hospital but some more seriously affected were transferred to hospitals in the capital Tunis, according to the spokesperson. Cases of poisoning due to the consumption of adulterated alcohol are frequent in Tunisia and often lead to death.
Precedents
In 2021, Tunisian health authorities announced the death of 5 people and the hospitalization of 25 others after the consumption of an adulterated alcoholic substance in the Kasserine region (central-west). In May 2020, 39 people were poisoned after consuming methanol, six of whom died near the town of Kairouan (center).
The consumption of artisanal alcohol is common in certain working-class neighborhoods of Tunis and in certain remote regions of the country where poverty and unemployment rates are high. This illegal alcohol is often much cheaper than alcoholic drinks sold in stores.
