The Military Committee increasingly challenged the authority of President Amin al-Hafiz and Prime Minister Salah al-Din al-Bitar, both staunch allies of Aflaq. In February 1966, the regionalist faction of the Committee launched a coup to topple the government. Jadid assigned Hatum to command a special force and arrest Hafiz from his home in Damascus. Hafiz resisted and a firefight between him and Hatum's men ensued. Hatum ordered tank fire against his home and armed clashes raged throughout the city, ending in the deaths of some 50 people. Hafiz was wounded and his daughter lost an eye during the battle, before Hafiz surrendered himself.