The Tunisian journalists' union has condemned the authorities for arresting a popular cartoonist.

It called for the immediate release of Tawfiq Omrane.

He's been charged with offensive activity over his drawings that poke fun at Tunisian Prime Minister Ahmed Hachani.

Mr Omrane's lawyer said he had been seized at his home and taken to the national security office in the town of Mégrine, near the capital, Tunis, at the orders of the public prosecutor.

Mr Omrane is well known for his satirical cartoons of President Kais Saied too.

The increasingly autocratic president, who seized almost all powers two years ago, has had many of his critics detained in recent months.