Tunisia court sentences suspects in killing of Hamas-linked drone engineer

A Tunisian court has sentenced in absentia the suspects in the killing of an engineer who Hamas said worked for the Palestinian militant group, handing down jail terms ranging from 10 years to life, a lawyer for the victim's family told AFP on Wednesday.

Mohamed Zouari died aged 49 in a hail of gunfire while driving in the coastal city of Sfax in 2016.

Hamas had said he was a prominent member specialising in drone development, and swiftly accused Israel of carrying out the killing.

The sentencing of the perpetrators -- who included Tunisian, Egyptian, Moroccan and Bosnian nationals -- was announced by the Tunis Court of First Instance on Tuesday evening, said lawyer Hanen Khemiri, who represents Zouari's family.

The convictions were handed down in absentia, as all 18 defendants are on the run, she said.

According to Khemiri, the Tunisian defendants had previously been arrested, but were released on bail without being prohibited from travelling, which allowed them to flee the country.

Hamas had claimed that Israel's Mossad spy agency had been operating in Tunisia for months ahead of the killing, and had approached Zouari posing as foreign journalists.