BEIRUT: A UN agency on Friday suspended services in Lebanon’s largest Palestinian refugee camp in protest at the presence of armed fighters in and around its schools and other facilities.
The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East announced the 24-hour suspension of services at Ain El-Hilweh, saying that it “does not tolerate actions that breach the inviolability and neutrality of its installations.”
Violent clashes at the camp in late July between armed members of the Fatah movement and extremists from rival groups left 11 people dead, more than 40 wounded, and forced thousands to flee.
UNRWA also said that schools in the camp are unlikely to be available for 3,200 children at the start of the new school year in the wake of repeated violations and significant damage to facilities.
The UN agency called on “armed actors to immediately vacate its facilities, to ensure unimpeded delivery of much-needed assistance to Palestine refugees.”
UNRWA spokesperson Hoda Samra told Arab News that the agency is monitoring developments in the camp, hoping for a clearer picture.
The agency’s decision could lead to a collapse of healthcare, education, water management, electricity, sanitation and municipal services within the camp, Palestinian political researcher Hesham Dibsi told Arab News.
Ain El-Hilweh houses around 63,000 Palestinians along with other nationalities, including Lebanese, Syrians and Egyptians, in need of affordable housing.
Between 33,000 and 36,000 registered Palestinian refugees are believed to be under UNRWA’s care, with Palestinians making up 60 percent of the camp’s population, Dibsi said.
The UNRWA school complex in the camp is situated in a zone controlled by extremist groups, which turned the site into a stronghold during the recent clashes.
Ghassan Ayoub, a senior member of the Palestinian People’s Party in Lebanon, said that UNRWA has sent “a strong message to Palestinian factions in the camp who have have turned facilities into a battlefront.”
He added: “Armed individuals from both sides are still entrenched in their positions in the camp, and the ceasefire agreement is the only thing preventing them from resuming clashes.”
An investigative committee’s report on the clashes is expected within days and will “address the situation,” Ayoub said.
“Our top priority is to uphold the ceasefire,” he said.
Dorothee Klaus, director of UNRWA Affairs in Lebanon, said the agency had received alarming reports that armed groups continue to occupy its facilities, including the school complex, which had been left badly damaged by the recent fighting.
Klaus described the situation as a “blatant violation of the sanctity of UN buildings under international law, endangering the neutrality of UNRWA facilities, and undermining the safety and security of both our staff and Palestinian refugees.”
In the aftermath of the clashes, 400 houses were destroyed, while “military activities forced hundreds of families to flee,” she said.
Security in the camp is overseen by the Lebanese army and Palestinian factions.
Ayoub said that extremist groups, including Asbat Al-Ansar and the Islamic Jihad movement, have declared their willingness to surrender any criminal involved in a murder in the camp to the Lebanese authorities.
“Today, what is imperative is the actual implementation of this declaration,” he said.
“This will enable the camp to move toward complete calm, restore normalcy, eliminate armed presence, and dismantle the security barriers that are currently impeding UNRWA’s operations.”
