Osama Maarouf Saad (or Oussama Saad,
Arabic
Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...
: أسامة معروف سعد; born June 6, 1954, in
Saida) is a
Lebanese politician,
MP, and the leader of the
Popular Nasserist Organization
The Popular Nasserist Organization – PNO () is a Sidon-based Nasserist party originally formed in 1973 by Maarouf Saad, a Sunni Muslim pan-Arab politician and member of Parliament (MP) later killed by the Lebanese Army during a February 1975 ...
(PNO) movement allied with the
Syrian government
The government of Syria takes place in a presidential system and is currently in a transitionary period under and led by a transitional government. The seat of the government is located in Damascus, Syria.
On 8 December 2024, after the succ ...
and
Hezbollah
Hezbollah ( ; , , ) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and paramilitary group. Hezbollah's paramilitary wing is the Jihad Council, and its political wing is the Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc party in the Lebanese Parliament. I ...
, founded by his father
Maarouf Saad, a leftist politician and mayor of
Sidon
Sidon ( ) or better known as Saida ( ; ) is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast in the South Governorate, Lebanon, South Governorate, of which it is the capital. Tyre, Lebanon, Tyre, t ...
whose violent assassination in 1975 helped spark the
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon.
The religious diversity of the ...
.
Osama’s family is a prominent
Sunni Muslim
Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Musli ...
family in Sidon, but he aligns himself with the
Shiite
Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...
Hezbollah
Hezbollah ( ; , , ) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and paramilitary group. Hezbollah's paramilitary wing is the Jihad Council, and its political wing is the Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc party in the Lebanese Parliament. I ...
and the Iran-led “
axis of resistance
The Axis of Resistance is an informal coalition of Iranian-supported militant and political organizations across the Middle East. Formed by Iran, it unites actors committed to countering the influence of the United States and Israel in the regio ...
”. He was subject to Hezbollah's online threats in 2021 after his PNO condemned the assassination of the anti-Hezbollah
Lokman Slim.
Biography
The son of former MP
Maarouf Saad, assassinated on February 26, 1975, and a
doctor of medicine
A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin language, Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of ph ...
from the
University of Cairo
Cairo University () is Egypt's premier public university. Its main campus is in Giza, immediately across the Nile from Cairo. It was founded on 21 December 1908;"Brief history and development of Cairo University." Cairo University Faculty of En ...
, he became in 1985 the right arm of his brother,
Mustafa Saad, head of the pro-Syrian
Popular Nasserist Organization
The Popular Nasserist Organization – PNO () is a Sidon-based Nasserist party originally formed in 1973 by Maarouf Saad, a Sunni Muslim pan-Arab politician and member of Parliament (MP) later killed by the Lebanese Army during a February 1975 ...
and historical rival of the family of
Rafiq Hariri
Rafic Bahaa El Deen al-Hariri (; 1 November 1944 – 14 February 2005) was a Lebanese businessman and politician who served as prime minister of Lebanon from 1992 to 1998 and again from 2000 to 2004.
Hariri headed five cabinets during his tenu ...
in
Saïda as well as his sister,
Bahia Hariri
Bahia Hariri (; born 26 June 1952) is a Lebanese politician and sister of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
Early life and education
Bahia Hariri was born in Sidon, Lebanon, on 23 June 1952 to a Sunni Muslim family. Her two brothers ...
.
A member of the Saïda municipal council in 1998, he became a deputy at the Sunni headquarters of Saïda in the summer of 2002, following the death of his brother Moustapha, who was a deputy at the time. He was elected automatically for lack of competitors.
In 2004, he allied himself with the former Hariri partner, ''Abderrahman Bizri'', and their list won the municipal elections in Saida, which was a serious setback for Rafiq Hariri for losing control over the elections of his hometown.
Osama Saad was re-elected as a deputy in the 2005 elections.
Pro-Syrian affirmed, supporter of
Hezbollah
Hezbollah ( ; , , ) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and paramilitary group. Hezbollah's paramilitary wing is the Jihad Council, and its political wing is the Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc party in the Lebanese Parliament. I ...
and of
General Michel Aoun
A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air and space forces, marines or naval infantry.
In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED Online. Mar ...
, and supporter of the
Palestinian
Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine.
*: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...
arms Lebanon, he is also a member of the National Rally, led by
Omar Karamé, the former Prime Minister, and of the Bloc of the Resistance and Development.
He made his return to the Lebanese parliament as a deputy for Saïda following his victory in the 2018 elections.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saad, Osama
People from Saïda
1954 births
Living people
Popular Nasserist Organization politicians
Lebanese Sunni politicians
Lebanese Arab nationalists