Tunisia's President Kais Saied denounced undocumented sub-Saharan African immigration to his country on Tuesday, saying in comments criticized by rights groups that it was aimed at changing Tunisia's demographic make-up.
Speaking in a meeting with the National Security Council in comments the presidency later published online, Saied said the influx of irregular migrants to Tunisia must quickly be ended.
"The undeclared goal of the successive waves of illegal immigration is to consider Tunisia a purely African country that has no affiliation to the Arab and Islamic nations," he said.
Tunisia is a major transit point for migrants and refugees seeking to cross the Mediterranean to Europe, including growing numbers of both Tunisians and people from other African countries.
Recent social media campaigns in Tunisia have urged authorities to stop African migrants travelling through Tunisia on their way to Europe or settling in the country, as thousands have done.
Tunisian authorities have this month cracked down on migrants, detaining dozens of them.
Saied said in his comments that parties, whom he did not name, had over the past decade settled African migrants in Tunisia in return for money.
