Video of Tunisian officials beating black passengers after barring them from boarding flight causes outrage online

Social media has been filled with outrage following the release of a video alleging that Tunisia Airlines barred black Africans from boarding their overbooked flights.

The horrifying moment Tunisian security forces began beating air passengers has been caught on camera, amid airport chaos.

Tunisair has cancelled flights and reportedly does not have enough aircrafts fit for flying, Jeune Afrique has reported. Following multiple flights being cancelled, passengers were left trapped for days in Tunis-Carthage airport without hotels or temporary visas.

People who were forced to stay behind at the airport, many of whom were Sub-Saharan African passengers, were callously beaten by Tunisian security forces for reportedly assaulting the police.

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However, the brutal footage shows baton-wielding police savagely attacking the air passengers who fall to the floor in agony.

Taking to Twitter, netizen @YussufMwinji shared a video of how a riot erupted when black Africans protested against the racist decisions by the airline.

In his status, @YussufMwinyi writes: “Tunisia airline has few operable aircrafts but overbooked passengers who waited at the airport for 2 days,”

“…then it let only non black Africans to board. When black Africans protested, they were beaten and charged with threatening the police.”

Garnering more than 1 million views, netizens commented on the tweet shared that there is a sense of hatred shared among Northern African countries towards black Africans.

The kind of hate northern african countries portrays to black Africans is very detestful

— Nonny (@SunnyChinonso1) July 9, 2022

It is kind of disgusting really, to see preferable treatment given just because of their difference in skin tone.

Let’s hope that the situation improves in the future.

Tunisia’s Mosaique FM news website said eight passengers, accused of assaulting security guards at Tunis Carthage International Airport, were arrested. The website failed to mention any violence, or show the video illustrating the brutal events.

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Sub-Saharan African migrants have previously been treated with contempt by Tunisia.

In April, dozens of refugees and migrants in Tunisia staged a sit-in in front of the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in the Tunisian capital, Tunis.

They were demanding to be evacuated to other countries following the ill-treatment they had been facing in Tunisia.

Mohamed Nour, 19, from Chad told Agence France Presse that they are constantly racially abused which makes life difficult.

He said “We have been attacked in our homes. We just want to be evacuated from this country.”

Human Rights Watch wrote a report on Tunisia claiming the Tunisian authorities were discreetly detaining people under the pretext of a state of emergency.

Other NGOs have also accused the country of carrying out “arbitrary arrests” of sub-Saharan African students in the country.

They said more than 300 people have complained of being arrested and in some cases beaten and imprisoned for several hours.

In the video from Tunis-Carthage airport, one man who was beaten is shown writhing in pain on the floor and clutching his head.