On 28 January 2016, the Council of the EU extended until 31 January 2017 a freeze on the “assets of 48 persons deemed to be responsible for the misappropriation of state funds in Tunisia and those associated with them” says an official statement.
The sanctions were initially introduced on 31 January 2011, targeting former president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, his wife and 46 other persons. The decision will be published in the Official Journal of the EU on 29 January 2016.