Family members of imprisoned dissidents in Tunisia want the International Criminal Court to investigate claims of political persecution and human rights violations in their country.

A court has sentenced moderate Tunisian Islamist leader Rached Ghannouchi to a year in prison for allegedly referring to police officers as tyrants in what his party said early Tuesday amounted to a sham trial.

The party of influential Islamist leader Rached Ghannouchi says a Tunisian investigative judge has ordered him held in custody following his arrest on Monday.

The leader of Tunisia’s main opposition party has been questioned by the country’s counterterrorism unit Tuesday on suspicion of money laundering and terrorist financing through an association charity.

Troops surrounded Tunisia’s parliament and blocked its speaker from entering after the president suspended the legislature and fired the prime minister and other top members of government.