Lib Dem suspended for sharing pro-Hamas message

Leena Sarah Farhat was the Lib Dems' general election candidate in Ynys Môn

A Liberal Democrat councillor has been suspended by the party after sharing a social media message that appeared to celebrate the Hamas attack on Israel last October.

Leena Sarah Farhat, a member of Llanfairfechan town council in Conwy county, was also her party's candidate in Ynys Môn at the general election.

She told BBC Wales she had made a mistake in reposting the message on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The party said the original message was "deeply offensive and unacceptable".

About 1,200 people were killed during the attack on 7 October 2023, which Hamas called "Operation al-Aqsa Flood".

Hamas also took 251 hostages, of which 97 remain unaccounted for.

Over the past year nearly 42,000 people have been killed during Israel's retaliatory offensive in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

The message which Farhat shared was posted from a different X account on the anniversary of Hamas' assault.

It read: "Operation Al-Aqsa Flood is one of the most important, valiant, ground-shaking anti-colonial uprisings of our time.

"At the crack of dawn they flew over & burst through the colonial wall, outsmarting and striking a lightning rod blow to the tyrant Goliath.

"Long live the resistance."

A spokesman for the Liberal Democrats said the tweet was "deeply offensive and unacceptable" and did not "reflect the values of our party".

"This person has been suspended from the party while a complaint against them is investigated under our independent complaints process," he added.

Farhat said: "I made a mistake. I retweeted something and I un-retweeted it as soon as I realised but that obviously stays on people's timeline for a while.

"Somebody clearly found it and put in a complaint, which is justified, and all I can do is apologise. It was wholly inappropriate."