Tunisian Rapper Klay BBJ Sentenced To Jail For Insulting Police

Rapper Jailed Because Of This Song?

A Tunisian rapper was sentenced to six months in jail for defamation, insulting the police and undermining public morals, Agence France-Presse reports.

Police arrested Ahmed Ben Ahmed (aka Klay BBJ) and another rapper, Alaa Yacoub, after the pair performed a song titled "Police Are Dogs" at a concert in northern Tunisia in late August.

Both rappers lost their appeal the same month and were sentenced to 21 months in prison, according to the BBC. After Ahmed sought a retrial, a judge gave him six months of jail time, while Yacoub is reportedly hiding from authorities, the Associated Press notes.

WATCH: The music video for "Police Are Dogs." (Story continues below.)

In Tunisia, it's a crime to insult public officials, including police officers. Doing so can result in a jail sentence.

In a widely condemned incident, journalist Zied el-Heni was detained for accusing the public prosecutor of concocting evidence in the case against Mourad Meherzi, a cameraman who threw an egg at a high-ranking government official, AFP reports. El-Heni was freed on bail last week ahead of a media strike to protest government restrictions on the press.

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