Protesters blocking the road in Sarafand, South Lebanon, April 22, 2022. (Credit: Mountasser Abdallah/OLJ)
SARAFAND — Demonstrators on Friday blocked the highway near Sarafand in southern Lebanon, to protest the arrest of a man accused of opening fire in the village last Saturday to intimidate activists launching an opposition list for the upcoming May 15 legislative elections.
Here’s what we know:
• According to our correspondent in the area, the protesters blocked traffic on the highway that runs between Saida and Sour by burning tires and using mounds of sand.
• This mobilization comes two days after the Lebanese army announced that it had arrested "A.Kh., who had fired in the air on April 17 in Sarafand” when a group of armed men attacked opposition parliamentary elections candidates attempting to present their “Together for Change” list and electoral program.
• Last Saturday, a number of media outlets and witnesses asserted that the people who attacked the members of the opposition were supporters of the Amal movement led by Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri, but the party denied any involvement.
• On Tuesday, a collective of activists called "The pioneers of justice" filed a request for the opening of a judicial investigation before the court of cassation regarding this incident
• “Together for Change” candidate Sarah Sweidan said at the time that she and “five buses filled with the list’s supporters” were prevented from reaching the event after the “the road was blocked with tires” and “our members were locked inside the [hall hosting the launch], beaten, and had their phones taken to prevent them from contacting the media.
• A Berri stronghold, the district of Lebanon-South II comprises seven seats, six Shiite and one Greek-Catholic. The reduced number of seats combined with the high number of registered voters in this constituency has led to a particularly high electoral coefficient (more than 21,000 votes in 2018), which rules out any meaningful competition for the Shiite Amal-Hezbollah duo.