Burning borders: Deconstructing the visual landscape of sub-Saharan migration along Tunisia's desert wall.

This article examines the transformation of Tunisia's border management with Libya from a historically fluid and porous frontier to a heavily militarized and violent space, particularly following the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings and subsequent security threats such as the 2016 Battle of Ben Guerdane. It highlights Tunisia's 2015 construction of a dirt wall and trench along 250 km of the border, which disrupted longstanding cross-border economic and social exchanges and intensified the marginalization and suffering of sub-Saharan migrants forcibly expelled and trapped in the desert, as documented by photographer Mahmud Turkia. The analysis situates these developments within a broader framework of coloniality, arguing that Tunisia's border practices replicate colonial-era divisions and racialized knowledge, while also reflecting Tunisia's postcolonial dependency on European Union financial and political influence, including its role as a gatekeeper for European migration control. The article calls for a decolonial rethinking of border policies that aligns with Tunisia's historical, cultural, and national identity to overcome inherited colonial paradigms and reduce border violence.