Tunisia denies making Zaytuna independent

The Tunisian government denied that the judicial authority is adopting the decree of making the famous Zaytuna Mosque independent from the governmen.t The Mosque is considered one of the main religious symbols in Tunisia and North Africa. The ministry stated in an official declaration: \"The news spread lately about the judicial decree of making Zaytuna Mosque independent from the government and ministry of religious affairs is not true.\" The ministry claimed  that the rumours were created with the aim to spread faked news among the public. The head of the legal affairs department in the mosque the lawyer Fathy el-Khomayri said last Friday that: \"Tunis\'s primary court refused the urgent lawsuites from the ministry of religious affairs against Sheikh Hussein al-Obeidi who changed the mosque locks preventing the Emam of Friday sermon (who is employed by the ministry) from taking the mosque podium.\" Mentioning that the court adopted a recent official document on May 12 stating: \"Zaytuna Mosque is an Islamic scientific educational independent institution not related to the state enjoying all its legal liabilities\". The document which is signed by the ministries of religious affairs, education, and scientific research stating that Obeidi is the head of the greatest mosque and all its branches, as all its organizing matters are related to the mosque administration. The ministry said that: \"The mentioned case according to the lawyer Fathy el-Khomayri, is an urgent case related to returning the original locks back to the mosque after Obeidi changed it and it has no supervision in relation to the mosque as supervising the 4900 mosque spread throughout Tunisia.\" The ministry of religious affairs confirmed on August 8 that the mosque administration has direct responsibility on employing emams, criers, assistances and event\'s organizers including scientific and teaching lessons but Zaytuna Mosque refused the decree and prevented the Emam employed by the ministry from taking the podium and expelled him from the mosque on more than one occasion.