Beji Caid Essebsi (or es-Sebsi; ar, الباجي قائد السبسي, translit=Muhammad al-Bājī Qā’id as-Sibsī, ; 29 November 1926 – 25 July 2019) was a

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

n politician who served as the 6th

president of Tunisia The president of Tunisia, officially the president of the Tunisian Republic ( ar, رئيس الجمهورية التونسية), is the head of state of Tunisia. Tunisia is a presidential republic, whereby the president is the head of state a ...

from 31 December 2014 until his death on 25 July 2019. Previously, he served as the

minister of foreign affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

from 1981 to 1986 and as the

prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

from February 2011 to December 2011. Essebsi's political career spanned six decades, culminating in his leadership of Tunisia in its transition to democracy.Carlotta Gall & Lilia Blaise
Béji Caïd Essebsi, President Who Guided Tunisia to Democracy, Dies at 92
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' (25 July 2019). Essebsi was the founder of the Nidaa Tounes political party, which won a plurality in the 2014 parliamentary election. In December 2014, he won the first regular

presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The p ...

following the

Tunisian Revolution The Tunisian Revolution, also called the Jasmine Revolution, was an intensive 28-day campaign of civil resistance. It included a series of street demonstrations which took place in Tunisia, and led to the ousting of longtime president Zine El ...

, becoming Tunisia's first democratically elected president.

Early life

Born in 1926, in Sidi Bou Said to an elite family originally from

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label= Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, aft ...

(

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

), he was the great-grandson of Ismail Caïd Essebsi, a Sardinian kidnapped by

Barbary corsairs The Barbary pirates, or Barbary corsairs or Ottoman corsairs, were Muslim pirates and privateers who operated from North Africa, based primarily in the ports of Salé, Rabat, Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli. This area was known in Europe a ...

in Ottoman Tunisia along the coasts of the island at the beginning of the nineteenth century, who then became a mamluk leader raised with the ruling family after converting to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

and was later recognized as a free man when he became an important member of the government.

Political career

Essebsi's first involvement in politics came in 1941, when he joined the

Neo Destour The New Constitutional Liberal Party ( ar, الحزب الحر الدستوري الجديد, '; French: ''Nouveau Parti libéral constitutionnel''), most commonly known as Neo Destour, was a Tunisian political party founded in 1934 by a group of ...

youth organization in Hammam-Lif. He went to France in 1950 to study law in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

. He began his career as a lawyer defending Neo-Destour activists. Essebsi later joined Tunisia's leader

Habib Bourguiba Habib Bourguiba (; ar, الحبيب بورقيبة, al-Ḥabīb Būrqībah; 3 August 19036 April 2000) was a Tunisian lawyer, nationalist leader and statesman who led the country from 1956 to 1957 as the prime minister of the Kingdom of ...

, as supporter of the separatist movement and later as his adviser following the country's independence from France in 1956. Essebsi, a protégé of Bourguiba, held various posts under Bourguiba from 1957 to 1971, including chief of the regional administration, general director of the ''Sûreté nationale'', Interior Minister in 1965, Minister-Delegate to the Prime Minister, Defense Minister in 1969, and then Ambassador to Paris. Habib Bourguiba and Beji Caïd Essebsi

From October 1971 to January 1972, he advocated greater democracy in Tunisia and resigned his function, then returned to Tunis. In April 1981, he came back to the government under

Mohamed Mzali Mohammed Mzali ( ar, محمد مزالي, 23 December 1925 – 23 June 2010) was a Tunisian politician who served as Prime Minister between 1980 and 1986. Early life Mzali was born in Monastir, Tunisia on 23 December 1925. His family has ancest ...

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

, serving until September 1986. In 1987, he switched allegiance following Ben Ali's removal of Bourguiba from power. He was appointed as Ambassador to West Germany. From 1990 to 1991, he was the Speaker of the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...

Interim Prime Minister in 2011

On 27 February 2011, in the aftermath of the

, Tunisian Prime Minister

Mohamed Ghannouchi Mohamed Ghannouchi ( ar, محمد الغنوشي ''Muhammad Al-Ghannushi''; born 18 August 1941) is a Tunisian politician who was Prime Minister of Tunisia from 1999 to 2011. Regarded as a technocrat, Ghannouchi was a long-standing figure in th ...

resigned following a day of clashes in

Tunis ''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois , population_note = , population_urban = , population_metro = 2658816 , population_density_km2 = , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 ...

with five protesters being killed. On the same day, acting President

Fouad Mebazaa Fouad Mebazaa ( ar, فؤاد المبزع, Fuʾād el-Mbazaʿ; born 15 June 1933) is a Tunisian politician who was the president of Tunisia from 15 January 2011 to 13 December 2011. He was active in Neo Destour prior to Tunisian independence, ser ...

appointed Caïd Essebsi as the new Prime Minister, describing him as "a person with an impeccable political and private life, known for his profound patriotism, his loyalty and his self-sacrifice in serving his country." The mostly young protesters however continued taking their discontent to the streets, criticizing the unilateral appointment of Caïd Essebsi without further consultation. On 5 May accusations of the former Interior Minister Farhat Rajhi that a coup d'etat was being prepared against the possibility of the Islamist Ennahda Party winning the Constituent Assembly election in October. This, again, led to several days of fierce anti-Government protests and clashes on the streets. In the interview disseminated on

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dust ...

, Rajhi called Caïd Essebsi a "liar", whose government had been manipulated by the old Ben Ali circles. Caïd Essebsi strongly rejected Rajhi's accusations as "dangerous and irresponsible lies, imed at spreadingchaos in the country" and also dismissed him from his post as director of the High Commission for Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, which he had retained after being dismissed from the office as Interior Minister already on 8 March. Nevertheless, Ennahda's president

Rached Ghannouchi Rached Ghannouchi ( ar, راشد الغنوشي, Rāshid al-Ghannūshī; born 22 June 1941), also spelled Rachid al-Ghannouchi or Rached el-Ghannouchi, is a Tunisian politician, the co-founder of the Ennahdha Party and serving as its intelle ...

further fueled the suspicions, stating that "Tunisians doubt the credibility of the Transitional Government." After the elections in October, Caïd Essebsi left office on 24 December 2011 when the new Interim President Moncef Marzouki appointed

Hamadi Jebali Hamadi Jebali ( ar, حمادي الجبالي, '; born 12 January 1949) is a Tunisian engineer, Muslim politician and journalist who was Prime Minister of Tunisia from December 2011 to March 2013. He was the Secretary-General of the Ennahda Mov ...

of the Islamist Ennahda, which had become the largest parliamentary group.

2014 elections

Following his departure from office, Caïd Essebsi founded the secular Nidaa Tounes party, which won a plurality of the seats in the October 2014 parliamentary election. He was also the party's candidate in the country's first free presidential elections, in November 2014. On 22 December 2014, official election results showed that Essebsi had defeated incumbent President Moncef Marzouki in the second round of voting, receiving 55.68% of the vote. After the polls closed the previous day, Essebsi said on local television that he dedicated his victory to "the martyrs of Tunisia".

President of Tunisia

Essebsi was sworn in as President on 31 December 2014 at the age of 88, he was the first freely elected president of modern Tunisia. He played a vital role in helping ensure that, more than any other Arab state, the North African country preserved many of the essential gains of the

Arab spring The Arab Spring ( ar, الربيع العربي) was a series of anti-government protests, uprisings and armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in Tunisia in response to corruption and econo ...

movement. He vowed on that occasion to "be president of all Tunisian men and women without exclusion" and stressed the importance of "consensus among all parties and social movements". G7 Taormina Paolo Gentiloni Beji Caid Essebsi handshake 2017-05-27

G7 Taormina Paolo Gentiloni Beji Caid Essebsi handshake 2017-05-27

On 3 August 2016, Essebsi appointed Youssef Chahed as a prime minister as the parliament withdrew confidence from

Habib Essid Habib Essid ( ar, حبيب الصيد; born 1 June 1949) is a Tunisian politician who was Head of Government of Tunisia from 6 February 2015 to 27 August 2016. He was the first Head of Government to be appointed following the adoption of the new ...

's government. Group photo G7 2017 Italy

In 2017 he called for legal amendments to the inheritance law to ensure equal rights for men and women, and he called for Tunisian women to be able to marry non-Muslims, which he believed is not in direct conflict with

Sharia Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...

or the Tunisian constitution. In 2018 he proposed a revision of Tunisian electoral law, which he felt contained many shortcomings going against the principles of the revolution. On 13 August 2018, he promised also to submit a bill to parliament soon which would aim to give women equal inheritance rights with men, as debate over the topic of inheritance reverberated throughout the Muslim world. Concerning the economic crisis of Tunisia, he declared that the year 2018 would be difficult but that the hope of economic revival was still possible. In April 2019, Essebsi announced he would not seek a second term in that year's presidential election, saying it was time to "open the door to the youth." Beji Caid Essebsi was recognized for his role in reinforcing democratic advances in the face of

economic hardship An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with the p ...

and

terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

Illness and death

Funeral of Tunisia president Beji Caid Essebsi

On 27 June 2019, Essebsi was hospitalized at a military hospital in Tunis due to a serious illness. The following day his condition stabilized. Couv-Tunivisions Janvier 2012

He was re-admitted to hospital on 24 July 2019, and died the following day, 25 July 2019 (which coincided with the 62nd anniversary of the abolition of the Tunisian monarchy), five months before his term was due to end. In addition to Tunisia, which declared mourning 7 days, eight other countries announced mourning 3 days after the death of Essebsi, namely

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Suda ...

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

Mauritania Mauritania (; ar, موريتانيا, ', french: Mauritanie; Berber: ''Agawej'' or ''Cengit''; Pulaar: ''Moritani''; Wolof: ''Gànnaar''; Soninke:), officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania ( ar, الجمهورية الإسلامية ...

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

, Palestine,

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus lie ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...

and

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribb ...

. Likewise, the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...

stood for a minute of silence, and flew flags for a day, after Essebsi’s death. The electoral commission subsequently announced that Essebsi's successor would be elected sooner than the original date of 17 November, due to the constitutional provision that in the event of the president's death, a permanent successor must be in office within 90 days. The president of the Assembly of Representatives of the People, Mohamed Ennaceur, served as acting president in the meantime. Ultimately, the election was pushed up to 15 September. His state funeral took place on 27 July in

Carthage Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classi ...

in the presence of dignitaries such as : * Mohamed Ennaceur (

President of Tunisia The president of Tunisia, officially the president of the Tunisian Republic ( ar, رئيس الجمهورية التونسية), is the head of state of Tunisia. Tunisia is a presidential republic, whereby the president is the head of state a ...

) *

Emmanuel Macron Emmanuel Macron (; born 21 December 1977) is a French politician who has served as President of France since 2017. ''Ex officio'', he is also one of the two Co-Princes of Andorra. Prior to his presidency, Macron served as Minister of Econ ...

(

President of France The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (french: Président de la République française), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency i ...

) *

Felipe VI Felipe VI (;, * eu, Felipe VI.a, * ca, Felip VI, * gl, Filipe VI, . Felipe Juan Pablo Alfonso de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Grecia; born 30 January 1968) is King of Spain. He is the son of former King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía, an ...

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King of Spain , coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg , coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain , image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg , incumbent = Felipe VI , incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...

) *

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa Marcelo Nuno Duarte Rebelo de Sousa (; born 12 December 1948) is a Portuguese politician and academic. He is the 20th and current president of Portugal, since 9 March 2016. He is a member of the Social Democratic Party, though he suspended hi ...

(

President of Portugal The president of Portugal, officially the president of the Portuguese Republic ( pt, Presidente da República Portuguesa, ), is the head of state and highest office of Portugal. The powers, functions and duties of prior presidential offices, an ...

) *

George Vella George William Vella (born 24 April 1942) is a Maltese politician who has served as president of Malta since 2019. A member of the Labour Party, he previously served as deputy prime minister of Malta and foreign affairs minister from 1996 to 1 ...

(

President of Malta The president of Malta ( mt, President ta' Malta) is the constitutional head of state of Malta. The President is indirect election, indirectly elected by the House of Representatives of Malta, which appoints the president for a five-year term a ...

) * Albert II (

Prince of Monaco The sovereign prince (french: prince de Monaco) is the monarch and head of state of the Principality of Monaco. All reigning princes have taken the name of the House of Grimaldi, although some have belonged to other families (Goyon de Matignon or ...

) *

Joachim Gauck Joachim Wilhelm Gauck (; born 24 January 1940) is a German politician and civil rights activist who served as President of Germany from 2012 to 2017. A former Lutheran pastor, he came to prominence as an anti-communist civil rights activist in E ...

(

Former A former is an object, such as a template, gauge or cutting die, which is used to form something such as a boat's hull. Typically, a former gives shape to a structure that may have complex curvature. A former may become an integral part of the ...

President of Germany The president of Germany, officially the Federal President of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: link=no, Bundespräsident der Bundesrepublik Deutschland),The official title within Germany is ', with ' being added in international corres ...

) *

Simonetta Sommaruga Simonetta Myriam Sommaruga (born 14 May 1960) is a Swiss politician who has served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council since 2010. A member of the Social Democratic Party (SP/PS), she was President of the Swiss Confederation in 2015 and 202 ...

(

President of Switzerland The president of the Swiss Confederation, also known as the president of the Confederation or colloquially as the president of Switzerland, is the head of Switzerland's seven-member Federal Council, the country's executive branch. Elected by t ...

) *

Abdelkader Bensalah Abdelkader Bensalah ( ar, عبد القـادر بن صالح, ʿAbd āl-Qādar bin Ṣāliḥ, 24 November 1941 – 22 September 2021) was an Algerian politician. He served as the President of the Council of the Nation, the upper house of the ...

(

President of Algeria The president of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria is the head of state and chief executive of Algeria, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Algerian People's National Armed Forces. History of the office The Tripoli Program, whi ...

) *

Mahmoud Abbas Mahmoud Abbas ( ar, مَحْمُود عَبَّاس, Maḥmūd ʿAbbās; born 15 November 1935), also known by the kunya Abu Mazen ( ar, أَبُو مَازِن, links=no, ), is the president of the State of Palestine and the Palestinian Nati ...

( President of Palestine) *

Fayez al-Sarraj Fayez Mustafa al-Sarraj ( ar, فائز السراج or ; born 20 February 1960) is a Libyan politician who served as the Chairman of the Presidential Council of Libya and Head of Government of the Government of National Accord from 2016 to 2021 ...

(

Chairman of the Presidential Council of Libya This article lists the Head of state, heads of state of Libya since the country's independence in 1951. Libya is in a tumultuous state since the start of the Arab Spring-related Libyan Crisis (2011–present), Libyan Crisis in 2011; the crisis ...

) *

Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani ( ar, تميم بن حمد بن خليفة آل ثاني; born 3 June 1980, Doha, Qatar) is the Emir of Qatar who succeeded his father, Sheikh Hamad, after Hamad abdicated in his favour. Tamim is the fourth son ...

(

Emir of Qatar The Emir, or Amir, of the State of Qatar ( ar, أمیر دولة قطر) is the monarch and head of state of the country. He is also the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces and guarantor of the Constitution. He holds the most powerful positi ...

) * Ghassan Salame ( Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations) *

Ahmed Aboul Gheit Ahmed Aboul Gheit ( ar, أحمد أبو الغيط , also: Abu al-Ghayt, Abu El Gheyt, etc.) (born 12 June 1942) is an Egyptian politician and diplomat who has been Secretary-General of the Arab League since July 2016. He was reappointed for a s ...

(

Secretary General of the Arab League This is a list of the Secretaries-General of the Arab League since its founding in 1945. List of Secretaries-General See also *Arab League {{Secretaries-General of the Arab League * Arab League, Secretaries-General Arab League The Ar ...

) * Taïeb Baccouche ( Secretary General of the Arab Maghreb Union) * Moulay Rachid ( Prince of Morocco) * Hamad bin Mohammed Al Sharqi ( Emir of Fujairah) *

Fuat Oktay Fuat Oktay (born 1964) is a Turkish politician, civil servant and academic serving as the first and current vice president of Turkey since 10 July 2018. An independent, he previously served as undersecretary to the prime minister of Turkey fr ...

(

Vice President of Turkey The vice president of Turkey, officially the vice president of the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Cumhurbaşkanı Yardımcısı), is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the government of Turkey, after the pres ...

) * Stephane Dion ( Special Envoy of the Prime Minister of Canada) * Ulrich Brechbuhl (

Counselor of the United States Department of State The Counselor of the United States Department of State is a position within the United States Department of State that serves the Secretary of State as a special advisor and consultant on major problems of foreign policy and who provides guidanc ...

). A procession took place from the

Carthage Palace Carthage Palace ( ara, قصر قرطاج), is the presidential palace of Tunisia, and the official residence and seat of the President of Tunisia. It is located along the Mediterranean Sea at the current city of Carthage (municipality), Carthag ...

Jellaz Cemetery Jellaz Cemetery ( ''Maqbara al-Jalāz''; also known as al-Jallaz and Cemetery Djalez) is a large hillside Muslim cemetery in Tunis, Tunisia, established in the thirteenth century. Located next to the bus station, the cemetery is the largest in th ...

where he was buried. Abdullah II (

King of Jordan The king of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan is Jordan's head of state and monarch. He serves as the head of the Jordanian monarchy—the Hashemite dynasty. The king is addressed as His Majesty (). Jordan is a constitutional monarchy. However ...

) also came to Tunisia on 29 July to offer condolences to the President of Tunisia Mohamed Ennaceur and to the family of President Beji Caid Essebsi.

Personal life

Essebsi married

Chadlia Saïda Farhat Chadlia Saïda Farhat Essebsi ( ar, شاذلية سعيدة فرحات السبسي; 1 August 1936 – 15 September 2019) was the First Lady of Tunisia (2014–2019) as the wife of President Beji Caid Essebsi. She was Tunisia's fifth first lady, ...

on 8 February 1958. The couple had four children: two daughters, Amel and Salwa, and two sons, Mohamed Hafedh and Khélil. His wife died on 15 September 2019, aged 83, nearly two months after her husband.

Honours and awards

Tunisian national medals

Foreign honors

Coat of Arms of Beji Caid Essebsi (Order of the Seraphim)

Medal of Honor of the Republic of Algeria (3 January 2013) * Order of Sheikh Isa ibn Salman Al Khalifa

Collar of the Order of Sheikh Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa (Bahrain; 27 January 2016) * JOR Order of the Renaissance GC

Grand Cordon of the

Supreme Order of the Renaissance The Supreme Order of the Renaissance (, "Medal of the Nahda") is the second knighthood order of the Kingdom of Jordan. History The order was instituted in 1917 by Emir Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca. According to correspondence between the ...

(Jordan; 20 October 2015) * Order of King Abdulaziz, 1st Class (Saudi Arabia)

Collar of the Order of King Abdulaziz (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; 29 March 2019) * ITA OMRI 2001 GC-GCord BAR

Knight Grand Cross with Collar of

Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic ( it, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana) is the senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-rankin ...

(8 January 2017) * MLT National Order of Merit BAR

Honorary Companions of Honour with Collar of the

National Order of Merit An order of merit is conferred by a state, government or royal family on an individual in recognition of military or civil merit. Order of merit may also refer to: * FIFA Order of Merit, for significant contribution to association football * PDC ...

(Malta; 5 February 2019) * Grand Collar of the Order of the State of Palestine ribbon

Grand Collar of the State of Palestine (6 July 2017) * Orden Republike Srbije 2

Second Class of the

Order of the Republic of Serbia Order of the Republic of Serbia ( sr, Орден Републике Србије) is the highest state order of Serbia. The order is awarded by the decree of the President of Serbia on special occasions. It is awarded in the first class on a la ...

(2016) *

Grand Cross of the

Order of Civil Merit The Order of Civil Merit ( es, Orden del Mérito Civil) was established by King Alfonso XIII of Spain in 1926. The order recognizes "the civic virtue of officers in the service of the Nation, as well as extraordinary service by Spanish and forei ...

(Spain; 28 October 1969) * Order of the Seraphim - Ribbon bar

Knight of the

Order of the Seraphim The Royal Order of the Seraphim ( sv, Kungliga Serafimerorden; ''Seraphim'' being a category of angels) is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Order of the P ...

(Sweden; 4 November 2015) *

Collar of the

Order of the State of Republic of Turkey The Order of the State of Republic of Turkey ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Devlet Nişanı) is the highest state order awarded to foreign nationals by the President of the Republic of Turkey. The Order of the State is conferred by the President, ...

(27 December 2017)

Awards

Honorary Degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad h ...

from

Paris-Sorbonne University Paris-Sorbonne University (also known as Paris IV; french: Université Paris-Sorbonne, Paris IV) was a public research university in Paris, France, active from 1971 to 2017. It was the main inheritor of the Faculty of Humanities of the Universit ...

(2015) * Founder's Award of

International Crisis Group The International Crisis Group (ICG; also known as the Crisis Group) is a transnational non-profit, non-governmental organisation founded in 1995. It is a think tank, used by policymakers and academics, performing research and analysis on global ...

(2015) *

Freedom of the City The Freedom of the City (or Borough in some parts of the UK) is an honour bestowed by a municipality upon a valued member of the community, or upon a visiting celebrity or dignitary. Arising from the medieval practice of granting respected ...

Amman Amman (; ar, عَمَّان, ' ; Ammonite: 𐤓𐤁𐤕 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''Rabat ʻAmān'') is the capital and largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of 4,061,150 as of 2021, Amman is ...

(2015) * Medal of Arab tourism (2017) * Tunisian Politician of the Year (2017) * Leadership Award of Global Hope Coalition (2018)

Publications

* ''Bourguiba : le bon grain et l'ivraie'', éd. Sud Éditions, Tunis, 2009, * ''La Tunisie : la démocratie en terre d'islam'' (with Arlette Chabot), éd. Plon, Paris, 2016

Gallery

File:Beji Caid el Sebsi 1.jpg, Essebsi giving a speech at the political office of the

Socialist Destourian Party The Socialist Destourian Party ( ar, الحزب الاشتراكي الدستوري ' ; french: Parti socialiste destourien) was the ruling political party of Tunisia from 1964 to 1988. Bahi Ladgham was the first Prime Minister from the party a ...

. File:Essebsi5.jpg, Essebsi in

Stade Chedly Zouiten Stade Chedly Zouiten is a multi-purpose stadium in the Mutuelleville district of Tunis, Tunisia. It is currently used by football team Stade Tunisien. The stadium holds 18,000 people. It hosted the 1965 Africa Cup of Nations. It was renovated fo ...

in 1960. File:Essebsi décoration.jpg, Essebsi decorated by

in 1966. File:Beji Caïd Essebsi minister of defense 2.jpg, Essebsi as Minister of Defense. File:BourguibaEtEssebsi.JPG, Essebsi with president Bourguiba File:Caïd Essebsi en juin 1981.jpg, Beji Caid Essebsi at the

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in 1981. File:Essebsi et Ahmed Taleb Ibahimi.jpg, Essebsi and

Ahmed Taleb Ibrahimi Dr. Ahmed Taleb Ibrahimi ( ar, أحمد طالب الإبراهيمي) (born 5 January 1932) is an Algerian politician and intellectual. He is the son of Islamic theologian and renowned scholar Bachir Ibrahimi, and served in multiple ministeria ...

signing a treaty between Tunisia and

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

in 1983. File:Hillary Clinton and Beji Caïd Essebsi.jpg, Beji Caid Essebsi and

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in 2011. File:La Tunisie et lItalie signent un accord sur limmigration (5609752265).jpg, Essebsi at a press conference with Italian Prime Minister

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in 2011. File:U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter, right, meets with Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi, left, at the Pentagon, May 21, 2015 150521-D-DT527-275a.jpg, Essebsi and

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the Pentagon The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense. It was constructed on an accelerated schedule during World War II. As a symbol of the U.S. military, the phrase ''The Pentagon'' is often used as a metony ...

in 2015. File:Secretary Kerry Meets With Tunisian President Essebsi (17717803659).jpg, Essebsi during meeting with

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party, he ...

in May 2015. File:Ahmed + President.jpg, Essebsi receiving a delegation in the presidential palace. File:Secretary Kerry Signs MOU With Tunisian Minister for Political Affairs Marzouk (17283596203).jpg, Essebsi oversees a MOU between his adviser Mohsen Marzouk and

in 2015. File:The Vice President, Shri M. Hamid Ansari calling on the President of Tunisia, Mr. Beji Caid Essebsi, in Tunisia on June 03, 2016.jpg, President Essebsi with the

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, in June 2016. File:Houlin Zhao at the Tunisia Presidential Palace.jpg, Essebsi with Secretary-General of the

ITU The International Telecommunication Union is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for many matters related to information and communication technologies. It was established on 17 May 1865 as the International Telegraph Union ...

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. File:Beji Caid el Sebsi at the Presidential Palace.jpg, Beji Caid Essebsi at the Carthage Presidential Palace. File:Secretary Kerry Shakes Hands With Tunisian President Essebsi (29756854886).jpg, Essebsi with

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in September 2016 in

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. File:Funérailles de Beji Caid Essebsi by Karim2k Funérailles de Beji Caid Essebsi (02) by Karim2k.jpg, Funeral of Beji Caid Essebsi in 2019. File:Funérailles de Beji Caid Essebsi by Karim2k DSC2713 (48404366936).jpg, The funeral procession of President Beji Caid Essebsi. File:Funérailles de Beji Caid Essebsi by Karim2k DSC2723 (48404345296).jpg, The car transporting Essebsi during his funeral. File:Funérailles de Beji Caid Essebsi by Karim2k DSC2828 (48404768307).jpg, The body of the late Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi

References

External links

* , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Essebsi, Beji Caid 1926 births 2019 deaths Tunisian Muslims Democratic Constitutional Rally politicians Neo Destour politicians Nidaa Tounes politicians People from Tunis Governorate People of the Tunisian Revolution Presidents of the Chamber of Deputies (Tunisia) Presidents of Tunisia Prime Ministers of Tunisia Socialist Destourian Party politicians Tunisian people of Sardinian descent Tunisian people of Italian descent Ambassadors of Tunisia to Germany Ambassadors of Tunisia to France Foreign ministers of Tunisia 20th-century Tunisian politicians 21st-century Tunisian politicians Interior ministers of Tunisia