-
Attack on Hezbollah critic sheds light on group’s shifting tactics

Support has been pouring in for Lokman Slim, a well-known critic of Hezbollah, after he began receiving threats in the form of notes left at his home that “his turn was next.”
Slim’s ordeal began on Tuesday when he and Makram Rabah, an American University in Beirut lecturer, were surrounded by Hezbollah supporters in Martyr’s Square tent after taking part in a public debate.
The debate on “Neutrality as a strategic concept for the return of prosperity” was being held at a tent event called The Hub in Martyrs’ Square. Organizers said the focus of the forum was regional conflict.
But days before it was held on December 10, Pierre Abi-Saab, an editor with the pro-Hezbollah newspaper al-Akhbar, tweeted for his followers to disrupt the forum claiming that the event centered around the normalization of ties with Israel.
“We know who you are. We know who your backers are. We know your agendas. That is your deception, and this is our reality,” Abi-Saab tweeted four days before the seminar.
Speaking to Al Arabiya’s sister channel Al Hadath live during the incident, Rabah said the disruptors who showed up to the event claimed they were fighting for the Palestinian cause and accused The Hub organizers of being Zionist supporters.
“We not facing protesters, we are facing people who are linked to the pro-Iranian parties who are falsely claiming that our seminar is in defense of staying out of the Arab-Israeli conflict. This is completely false,” Rabah said at the time.
Slim, director of Hayya Bina and UMAM, a Lebanese organization that focuses on Shia politics and social dynamics, said it was clear that the organizers had no intention of discussing Israel at the seminar and that pro-Hezbollah supporters were using new tactics to distract critics.
“The new strategy Hezbollah started adopting was when they noticed that their muscular strategy was not working. So, they infiltrated the squares by finally sending their people under pseudo leftists slogans and muscles … mainly under the slogan of fighting Israel. What happened on the evening of 11th was a first expression which then continued the day after when they burned the tent,” Slim said.
The same protesters who disrupted the seminar the night before then returned to the square and burned The Hub’s tent but then also proceeded to burn the neighboring tents belonging to other protesters.
“They then raided the house of my family and my home,” he added. “It is a long standoff which became clear over the last days.”
A day after the incident at Martyr’s Square, Slim received printed papers with threats that read: “One day, you will be the trash of history” and “No peace with agents”.
According to Hanin Ghaddar, a Friedmann Visiting Fellow at The Washington Institute who focuses on Shia politics, the incident in Beirut bears the markings of a shift in Hezbollah’s strategy from using media tactics to physical force to silence its critics.
“Right now, it's beyond the media campaign. I think this is what's really new. It is actually physical attacks. It's not just discrediting them and calling them American spies. It's going after physical attacks in the sense that they actually went ahead and sent people to besiege the tent, the Hub, burning and destroying it and going actually after
The incident came days before Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah gave his first televised address in more than a month when he claimed that the United States was using the protests in Lebanon as a tool to pressure Iran.
According to Ghaddar, Hezbollah tolerates Shia protesters who join the demonstrations against the ruling elite, except when it comes to directly criticizing Hezbollah.
“At the end of the day, they can easily be arrested, targeted and beaten up. And that happened actually in the south many, many times. They went after their families and they went to their homes and interrogated them. So, of course, you get to a point where you decide that your safety and your family is more important than one moment on the street,” Ghaddar said.
“You have a lot of people who joined the protests in Nabatieh, Tyre, Baalbek at the beginning. And it's becoming a nightmare for them,” she added.
Lebanese protesters have come under repeated attacks from pro-Hezbollah and Amal party supporters who have attempted to disrupt protests in Beirut and other cities. Days after the protesters first erupted across Lebanon, demonstrators came under attack in Nabatieh, a Shia town considered a stronghold for the Iranian-backed organization and its allies, from men reportedly from Hezbollah and the associated Amal party, led by Nabih Berri.
For Slim, the Lebanese activist said he has become used to receiving threats since 2008 but that he felt this time it might be different.
“I never considered that I should speak out for myself but what happened over the past 48 hours didn't concern me only, it concerns my family, my mother, my sister, my wife and my colleagues. Therefore, I went public. I felt that's it's my moral duty to speak out and say that enough is enough. If you
You May Also Like
Popular Posts
Caricature
BENEFIT AGM approves 10%...
- March 27, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).
Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.
opinion
Report
ads
Newsletter
Subscribe to our mailing list to get the new updates!