Syrian Social Nationalist Party Accuses Asaad Hardan’s Supporters of ‘Storming’ Office

Syrian Social Nationalist Party Logo
Syrian Social Nationalist Party Logo
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Syrian Social Nationalist Party Accuses Asaad Hardan’s Supporters of ‘Storming’ Office

Syrian Social Nationalist Party Logo
Syrian Social Nationalist Party Logo

Armed members of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party on Wednesday seized control of the SSNP department’s office in the Lebanese northern city of Batroun, amid a dispute between rival factions over the legitimacy of the party’s latest internal elections.

A video that went viral on social media showed armed supporters of Assaad Hardan as they stormed the office where they made statements after which the Lebanese army intervened to make them evacuate the place.

In a statement, a rival SSNP faction accused “an armed clique belonging to MP Asaad Hardan” of “storming the SSNP department’s office in the heart of the souks of the safe city of Batroun, in a behavior resembling the work of outlaw gangs.”

While Hardan made no official statement in this regard, Lebanese Forces MP Fadi Saad tweeted saying that this brings back to memory a period that was supposedly gone for good.

Saad urged the security forces, especially the Lebanese Army, to put an end to these armed incidents before the situation escalates in Batroun.

Head of Batroun District in Kataeb Samer Saade also denounced the developments in the city, saying they are the result of illegitimate arms.

In a tweet, Saade called on the SSNP to resolve its disputes outside of Batroun.

The army later announced the arrest of the armed SSNP members who entered into the Batroun office.



Olmert: ‘Humanitarian City’ in Rafah Would Be Concentration Camp for Palestinians

Former Israel's prime minister Ehud Olmert looks on during an interview with AFP (Agence France-Presse) in Paris on June 9, 2025. (Photo by STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP)
Former Israel's prime minister Ehud Olmert looks on during an interview with AFP (Agence France-Presse) in Paris on June 9, 2025. (Photo by STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP)
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Olmert: ‘Humanitarian City’ in Rafah Would Be Concentration Camp for Palestinians

Former Israel's prime minister Ehud Olmert looks on during an interview with AFP (Agence France-Presse) in Paris on June 9, 2025. (Photo by STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP)
Former Israel's prime minister Ehud Olmert looks on during an interview with AFP (Agence France-Presse) in Paris on June 9, 2025. (Photo by STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP)

Israel’s former prime minister Ehud Olmert said that the “humanitarian city” that Israel’s defense minister has proposed building on the ruins of Rafah would be a concentration camp, and forcing Palestinians inside would be ethnic cleansing, the Guardian reported on Sunday.

Israel was already committing war crimes in Gaza and the West Bank, Olmert told the daily, and construction of the camp would mark an escalation.

Israeli Minister of Defense, Israel Katz, has ordered the military to start drawing up operational plans for construction of the “humanitarian city” on the ruins of southern Gaza, to house initially 600,000 people and eventually the entire Palestinian population, stated the Guardian.

“It is a concentration camp. I am sorry,” Olmert told he daily, when asked about the plans laid out by Katz last week. Once inside, Palestinians would not be allowed to leave, except to go to other countries, Katz said.

The “humanitarian city” project is backed by Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Israel’s refusal to withdraw from the area Katz envisages for the camp is a sticking point in the faltering negotiations for a ceasefire deal, Israeli media have reported.