2023-09-09 14:49:04
BEIRUT (AP) — Clashes resumed in Lebanon’s largest Palestinian refugee camp early Saturday between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fata group and Islamist militants, leaving three dead and several wounded.
Lebanon’s interim prime minister, Najib Mikati, discussed the situation with Abbas to try to end the fighting.
The events in Ein el-Hilweh “do not benefit the Palestinian cause and harm the Lebanese state,” Mikati said.
Sounds of gunshots and explosions could be heard in the countryside and surrounding areas on the outskirts of the port city of Sidon, in the south of the country.
The fighting, which resumed on Friday after a month of relative calm, forced hundreds of people to flee the scene.
Fata had accused Islamist militias of killing one of its military officers on July 30.
At least 20 people were injured on Friday.
The Lebanese army said in a statement that it is in contact with the parties to try to end the fighting. He also warned people to stay away from the area.
A Lebanese security official said three people were killed on Saturday: two Palestinians inside the camp and a Lebanese man hit by a stray bullet while driving near Ein el-Hilweh. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said 10 people were injured.
Ein el-Hilweh is known for its lawlessness and frequent acts of violence. According to the United Nations, some 55,000 people live in the camp, opened in 1948 to house Palestinians displaced by the creation of the State of Israel.
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