Clashes renewed in Ain Al-Hilweh refugee camp
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Al Mayadeen correspondent reports that the confrontations in the Ain Al-Hilweh refugee camp have been renewed.
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The Ain Al-Hilweh refugee camp, Saida, Lebanon (Social media)
The ceasefire in Ain Al-Hilweh was broken again late Wednesday as gunfire and explosions echoed through the refugee camp on an otherwise relatively calm night.
The clashes in the refugee camp were renewed, with Fatah fighters and armed extremists partaking in armed clashes despite the existing ceasefire, an Al Mayadeen correspondent reported.
"Violent clashes with machine guns and rocket launchers rocked Ain Al-Hilweh camp," our correspondent reported.
The confrontations were renewed as a result of Jund Al-Sham elements attacking Fatah command centers.
Fatah Secretary-General in Saida, Maher Shabayta, told Al Mayadeen that the movement was committed to the ceasefire in the camp.
"We are committed to the ceasefire in the Ain Al-Hilweh refugee camp, but we were surprised by a rocket attack on one of our posts, leading to the martyrdom of one and the injury of two [of our members]."
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) August 2, 2023
- Maher Shabayta, Fatah Movement's Secretary-General in Saida to… https://t.co/FDKmohyXc8
"We were surprised by a missile attack on one of our positions, which led to the martyrdom of one and the injury of two [of our members]," stressing that Fatah members are defending their positions in the camp.
The Fatah movement is not advancing on any axis, and when such a decision is taken, it will be public, he further stressed.
Earlier today, Al Mayadeen's correspondent cited a Palestinian source as confirming the involvement of Bilal Badr -- an extremist residing in Ain Al-Hilweh refugee camp in Saida, South Lebanon, with his militant group -- in the assassination of the commander of the Palestinian National Security Forces in Saida, Abu Ashraf Al-Armoushi and his four companions, an event that sparked the recent clashes.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent reported that the calm still prevailed on the camp's fronts after the implementation of a ceasefire under the supervision of the Palestinian Joint Action Committee on Tuesday night. Nonetheless, some violations of the ceasefire were recorded, as gunfire and shelling sounds were heard intermittently.
Read more: Lebanese army confirms several troops injured in Ain Al-Hilweh
Lebanese MP for Saida district Osama Saad told Al Mayadeen on Wednesday that work was underway to establish a permanent ceasefire in Ain El-Hilweh.
"The terms of the agreement, including the handing over of the killers of Major General Abu Ashraf al-Armoushi, will be implemented after the ceasefire is established," Saad confirmed in an interview.
"All Lebanese and Palestinian parties must work to uncover the perpetrators and hand them over to the Lebanese authorities to prevent any foreign agendas from unfolding."
Saad also commended the role which the Lebanese army is playing noting that the resolution to the clashes in Ain Al-Hilweh should be political and not military.
"The events in Ain Al-Hilweh come at a critical time. They are linked to the national situation [in Lebanon], the situation in the region, and the Israeli determination to target Palestinians wherever they are."
Lebanese MP Osama Saad to #AlMayadeen: The Zionist enemy is escalating against #Lebanon and #Palestine, and we must not help it by fomenting sedition inside #Palestinian camps, which is in the Israeli interest. https://t.co/qMqbIKSeX6
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) August 2, 2023
"The Zionist enemy is escalating against Lebanon and Palestine, and we must not help it in fomenting strife inside the camps for what is in the Israeli interest."
At the conclusion of his interview, Saad invited all Palestinian factions to consider the prospect of gun regulation.
