1 Dead, Several Hurt in Fierce Ain el-Hilweh Clashes

One person was killed and several people were wounded on Friday as heavy clashes broke out at the Palestinian refugee camp of Ain el-Hilweh in Sidon, state-run National News Agency reported.

It identified the slain man as Hussein Othman, saying the sounds of heavy gunfire and RPG blasts were echoing across the camp.

Meanwhile, al-Mayadeen television said dozens of families were fleeing the camp as a result of the clashes that erupted between “members of the Fatah Movement and Islamist militants.”

NNA said the fighting broke out in the wake of a brawl between young men from the al-Sifsaf and al-Braksat neighborhoods.

“Palestinian-Lebanese contacts are underway in a bid to pacify the situation and contain the tensions,” the agency added.

Al-Jadeed television meanwhile said members of the Joint Palestinian Security Force have deployed at the camp's al-Sifsaf neighborhood in a bid to bring the situation under control.

Two people were killed at the camp on Monday also in clashes between Fatah and Islamist militants.

It was not immediately clear if there is a connection between the two rounds of violence.

Such incidents have become frequent in recent years in Ain el-Hilweh, the largest of Lebanon's 12 Palestinian refugee camps.

By long-standing convention, the Lebanese army does not enter the Palestinian camps in the country, leaving the Palestinian factions themselves to handle security.

That has created lawless areas in many camps, and Ain el-Hilweh has gained notoriety as a refuge for extremists and fugitives.

Y.R.