- Title: Child wounded in clashes at Palestinian camp in Lebanon
- Date: 28th February 2017
- Summary: SIDON, LEBANON (FEBRUARY 28, 2017) (REUTERS) SIGN READING (Arabic) 'AL RAEE HOSPITAL' VARIOUS OF WOUNDED CHILD BEING TREATED IN HOSPITAL DOCTOR TALKING TO MOTHER OF WOUNDED CHILD (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) MOTHER OF WOUNDED CHILD, SHOUTING: "I swear to burn the camp and everyone in it, let Fatah know that, on me and on my enemies." (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) U.N. RELIEF AND WORKS AGENCY LEBANON DIRECTOR, HAKAM SHAHWAN, SAYING: "All of our institutions must be protected under any circumstances, war or not, because we are always neutral. In order to continue our job we must be neutral and we ask all armed groups that are now inside our schools, to immediately exit, in order for these institutions to be protected, and to save its international role inside the camp." VARIOUS OF SMOKE RISING ABOVE AIN EL HILWEH PALESTINIAN REFUGEE CAMP (AUDIO OF GUNFIRE) WOMAN WALKING DOWN STREET IN AIN EL HILWEH PALESTINIAN REFUGEE CAMP VARIOUS OF AERIAL SHOTS OF AIN EL HELWE PALESTINIAN REFUGEE CAMP
- Embargoed: 14th March 2017 11:28
- Keywords: Lebanon Palestinian refugee camp boy clash wound child
- Location: SIDON, LEBANON
- City: SIDON, LEBANON
- Country: Lebanon
- Topics: Asylum/Immigration/Refugees,Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA00165FPMBR
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Clashes between gunmen in the Ain el-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp in southern Lebanon intensified on Tuesday (February 28), with a severely wounded child the latest casualty in several days of violence, witnesses and security sources said.
Lebanon's state-run National News Agency earlier reported the boy had died. The family later said he was not dead, but had been severely wounded and was being treated in hospital.
The wounded child's mother was at the boy's bedside as doctors struggled to save his life.
"I swear to burn the camp and everyone in it, let Fatah know that," she cried in anger.
Palestinian activists inside the camp urged people to protest against the violence. A loudspeaker on a mosque implored the warring sides to stop firing to avoid civilian casualties, even as gunfire rang out, a Reuters witness said.
The U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) called on warring parties to respect the neutrality of schools and relief centres run by the agency at the camp.
"All of our institutions must be protected under any circumstances, war or not, because we are always neutral. In order to continue our job we must be neutral and we ask all armed groups that are now inside our schools, to immediately exit, in order for these institutions to be protected, and to save its international role inside the camp," Hakam Shahwan, UNRWA director in Lebanon said.
Islamist militants and gunmen from Fatah, the party of West Bank-based Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas have engaged in intermittent clashes since last week, trading machine gun and rocket-propelled grenade fire, and wounding several people.
The camp, near the southern Lebanese coastal city of Sidon, has regularly seen factional disputes spiral into deadly violence.
Security in the Palestinian camps is the responsibility of a joint Palestinian force, not the Lebanese security services, meaning that the army hardly ever enters.
On a visit to Beirut last week, Abbas discussed with Lebanese officials the security arrangements in Palestinian camps in the country, which are home to nearly 450,000 Palestinian refugees.
Fatah has an agreement with Lebanese authorities to hand over wanted Islamist militants hiding out in Ain el-Hilweh, which is outside Lebanese security forces' jurisdiction, a security source said.
Attempted Fatah crackdowns are a source of ongoing tension between it and the Islamists, the source added. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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