More than 2,000 people have been forced to flee violence between rival factions at a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon.
The clashes between Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah movement and Islamist groups left 11 people dead. The violence erupted on Saturday when a member of an Islamist group was killed, and tensions continued to mount through to Sunday, culminating with the death of a Fatah commander and several of his aides.
A ceasefire was agreed on Sunday but soon broke down, and heavy fighting was again reported on Monday with gun and anti-tank fire echoing through the camp. More than 40 people were injured in the clashes, including a UN aid worker, and two schools were damaged. The Ein el-Hilweh camp is the largest in Lebanon and houses more than 63,000 registered refugees.
It falls outside the jurisdiction of the Lebanese security forces and is left up to rival factions within the camp to maintain its security, but factional disputes are common. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) has suspended all its operations in the camp due to the violence and has called on all parties to immediately return to calm and take all measures necessary to protect civilians, including children.
