A fierce battle between Palestinian factions in the Ain Al Hilweh refugee camp, the largest in Lebanon, raged for a third day on Monday as politicians pressed for a ceasefire.
The death toll has risen to at least eleven, with about 40 injured. More than 2,000 people have been displaced from the Palestinian camp in Saida since the fighting began on Saturday evening, according to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).
Footage circulating on social media showed heavy smoke rising over the camp as the sound of rapid machine gun fire emanated. Factions within the overcrowded refugee site used heavy weaponry, Lebanese state media reported.
UNRWA said a member of its staff was injured in the clashes, while the Lebanese army said a soldier at a nearby military barracks was wounded by shrapnel.
UNRWA said it had temporarily suspended all services in the camp but opened its schools to accommodate those displaced by the fighting and provide humanitarian assistance.
At least 11 people were admitted to Sidon's Hamshari Hospital on Monday as clashes resumed after a period of calm on Sunday evening, hospital director Dr Riyad Abu Al Enein said.
Talal Aboujamous, a doctor who lives in Ain Al Hilweh described the fighting in the camp as a “war”.
“The number of people being displaced from the camp is not small and the battle has expanded to every corner of the camp,” he told The National by phone. “When I look out the window I see scared people rushing to get out of the camp."
The sound of bullets whizzing past could be heard in the background as he spoke.
Dr Aboujamous said the violence had been escalating since Saturday evening, with only brief periods of calm.
A Lebanese security source told The National the army had closed off all entrances to the camp to prevent civilian casualties but it was not preventing fleeing families from leaving.
Lebanon's army does not enter Palestinian refugee camps in the country, leaving the Palestinian factions to handle security inside.
Mifleh Noufal, born and raised in Ain Al Hilweh but now residing in the nearby Mieh w Mieh area, said the sound of a battle had been near constant.
“The war is between Fatah and a group of extremists,” he said. “The Islamists don’t have a lot of support in the camp. They’re responsible for a number of assassinations and always try to make problems in the camp.”
The fighting was reportedly triggered by a failed assassination attempt on an Islamist extremist leader on Saturday, Lebanese state media reported, instead killing one of his companions.
On Sunday, Fatah security official Abu Ashraf Al Armoushi and four of his bodyguards were killed in a “heinous operation”, according to a statement by the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO), the umbrella organisation under which the Fatah movement operates.
The assailants were identified as members of the militant group Jund al Sham “and takfiri gangs”, said a statement by Maj Gen Subhi Abu Arab, commander of the Palestinian National Security Forces in the Lebanese camps.
Clashes between Fatah, the largest faction within the PLO, and rival Islamist extremists are not uncommon in the camp, which is reputed to harbour outlaws. Fatah has for years attempted to contain the presence of outlaws and smaller networks of insurgents who seek to gain control of the camp.
Ain Al Hilweh is home to more than 54,000 registered Palestinian refugees, according to the United Nations.
Where to apply
Applicants should send their completed applications - CV, covering letter, sample(s) of your work, letter of recommendation - to Nick March, Assistant Editor in Chief at The National and UAE programme administrator for the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, by 5pm on April 30, 2020.
Please send applications to nmarch@thenational.ae and please mark the subject line as “Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism (UAE programme application)”.
The local advisory board will consider all applications and will interview a short list of candidates in Abu Dhabi in June 2020. Successful candidates will be informed before July 30, 2020.
The finalists
Player of the Century, 2001-2020: Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus), Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Ronaldinho
Coach of the Century, 2001-2020: Pep Guardiola (Manchester City), Jose Mourinho (Tottenham Hotspur), Zinedine Zidane (Real Madrid), Sir Alex Ferguson
Club of the Century, 2001-2020: Al Ahly (Egypt), Bayern Munich (Germany), Barcelona (Spain), Real Madrid (Spain)
Player of the Year: Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
Club of the Year: Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Real Madrid
Coach of the Year: Gian Piero Gasperini (Atalanta), Hans-Dieter Flick (Bayern Munich), Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Agent of the Century, 2001-2020: Giovanni Branchini, Jorge Mendes, Mino Raiola
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
Match info:
Real Betis v Sevilla, 10.45pm (UAE)
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
UFC Fight Night 2
1am – Early prelims
2am – Prelims
4am-7am – Main card
7:30am-9am – press cons
