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Friday, December 23, 2011
07:39 Beirut
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Who’s causing the trouble in Ain al-Hilweh?
Mona Alami, December 21, 2011 share
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A file photo from March 2008 shows Fatah fighters in the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp outside the southern Lebanese city of Saida. (AFP/Mahmoud Zayat)
New clashes put an end this weekend to what seemed to be a relative period of peace in the Ain al-Hilweh camp, carving new lines in the political balance between the Fatah movement, on the one hand, and Palestinian Islamist factions, such as Jund al-Sham, Fatah al-Islam and Osbat al-Ansar, on the other. In an unexpected turn of events, it appears a new faction may be forming among members of these groups.
In recent weeks, armed clashes, attacks and assassination attempts against Fatah members have been increasing in number and intensity. The target seems to be the head of the Palestinian Armed Struggle, Abdel Hamid Issa, well-known by his nom de guerre, Al-Lino. Like a sheriff, he has built a reputation for being one of the toughest Fatah members in the camp. His fixed, uncompromising stance against Islamist factions has made him the target of several assassination attempts.
Ain al-Hilweh, the largest Palestinian camp in the country is home to about 70,000 refugees. The enclave is an infamous bastion for radical Islamic groups. Until the summer of 2011, the camp had been relatively calm under the Fatah security apparatus, with the help of a committee comprised of 17 Palestinian military factions to handle security incidents.
The truce seems forgone and Islamic factions seem restless once more. “Recent incidents were blamed on members of Jund al-Sham, fallen out of the jurisdiction of Osbat al-Ansar,”admits the source.
Jund al-Sham was dismantled a few years ago, some of its members joining Osbat al-Ansar in the Safsaf area, while others beefed up the remnants of Fatah al-Islam, taking residence in the infamous Tawarik and Hotein quarters of the camp. Now, an estimated 100 Islamist militants have taken shelter in these districts.
Security sources in the camp and Palestinian leaders fear that members of the already-dismantled Islamist faction Jund al-Sham have joined forces with what’s left of Fatah al-Islam to form a new organization that could complicate the security situation in the Ain al-Hilweh.
Al-Lino was not hurt in any of the recent spate of attacks, but several of his bodyguards have been assassinated or injured. Last Saturday, Amer Fustoq was shot dead. The same day, Fatah officer Talal al-Ordoni was injured in an ambush in the camp’s vegetable market. Three other people were wounded in the process. A few days earlier, a Jund al-Sham militant killed Ashraf al-Qaderi, another bodyguard protecting Al-Lino.
“Al-Qaderi’s assassination was an act of revenge,” Issa told NOW Lebanon, adding that he believes the incident was linked to the foiled attempt on his life a few months ago on August 5. Two members of the Islamist faction Jund al-Sham, Mahmoud Abdel-Kader and Abou Kharroub, were involved in the bombing.
Al-Lino has also accused Fatah al-Islam’s new so-called emir, Oussama al-Shehabi, of ordering the assassination. Shehabi is said to have replaced Abdul Rahman Awad at the head of Fatah al-Islam, deemed a terrorist group by the Lebanese state which fought a three-month war with the faction in the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in North Lebanon, in the summer of 2007.
“Jund al-Sham is definitely getting bolder,” said a security source inside the camp, on condition of anonymity.
Issa’s statements also imply that the Islamist factions are becoming more difficult to control by the day, while assassination attempts against Fatah members are increasing with intensity. “There was another assassination attempt last week on the life of Uday Othman, another member of Fatah,” Issa explained.
Sporadic gunfire erupted in Ain al-Hilweh after a brawl between a Fatah member and Abed Fodah, a Jund al-Sham militant. It seems that Fatah had tried arresting Fodah a few days earlier, but was freed by members of Osbat al-Ansar, another radical organization involved in terrorist activities in the nineties.
The new wave of violence reveals that Fatah members and the Islamists have old scores to settle. Over the past four years, dozens of Jund al-Sham members were killed in gunfights and bombings which remain unsolved. Security sources inside the camp have repeatedly accused Fatah members of assassinating the Islamist leaders one by one.
Issa continues to blame Jund al-Sham for the recent wave of violence. “[These] renegades are seeking to provoke tension and create a confrontation between Fatah and the Islamic forces, which we are working to avoid,” he said.
But other Palestinian leaders fear that a new, mysterious faction is rising. Others such as Hajj Maher Oueid, head of Ansar Allah, an Islamic faction close to Hezbollah, said that “initial investigations are now pointing to the involvement of a third faction, which is playing the two sides against one other.” Hajj Maher refused to name the “third faction.”
Arabic daily Al-Hayat also mentioned the rise of a new Palestinian faction. The paper named former Jund al-Sham member Haitham Chaabi and ex-Fatah al-Islam fighter Naeem Abbas as possible members. Abbas was said to have links with Al-Qaida and is wanted for his involvement in bombings targeting UNIFIL convoys in South Lebanon.
Security sources within the camp do not seem, however, very optimistic. Given their limited resources, Jund al-Sham cannot afford to engage on its own in a full-fledged war against Fatah, which remains the dominant faction inside the southern camp. That is why, sources say, the party could have obtained the backing of another Islamic Palestinian faction.
Sources underline that this mysterious third faction is currently deployed within the camp as well as in the outskirts of the southern city of Saida. If their assumptions are confirmed, the third faction will further complicate the political equation in Ain al-Hilweh.
To read more: http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticleDetails.aspx?ID=344903#ixzz1hKk1RMn2
Only 25% of a given NOW Lebanon article can be republished. For information on republishing rights from NOW Lebanon: http://www.nowlebanon.com/Sub.aspx?ID=125478
show all
Friday, December 23, 2011
07:39 Beirut
Subscribe to NOW Lebanon RSS feeds
Agenda
Who’s causing the trouble in Ain al-Hilweh?
Mona Alami, December 21, 2011 share
Read more by this author
Save as PDF
A file photo from March 2008 shows Fatah fighters in the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp outside the southern Lebanese city of Saida. (AFP/Mahmoud Zayat)
New clashes put an end this weekend to what seemed to be a relative period of peace in the Ain al-Hilweh camp, carving new lines in the political balance between the Fatah movement, on the one hand, and Palestinian Islamist factions, such as Jund al-Sham, Fatah al-Islam and Osbat al-Ansar, on the other. In an unexpected turn of events, it appears a new faction may be forming among members of these groups.
In recent weeks, armed clashes, attacks and assassination attempts against Fatah members have been increasing in number and intensity. The target seems to be the head of the Palestinian Armed Struggle, Abdel Hamid Issa, well-known by his nom de guerre, Al-Lino. Like a sheriff, he has built a reputation for being one of the toughest Fatah members in the camp. His fixed, uncompromising stance against Islamist factions has made him the target of several assassination attempts.
Ain al-Hilweh, the largest Palestinian camp in the country is home to about 70,000 refugees. The enclave is an infamous bastion for radical Islamic groups. Until the summer of 2011, the camp had been relatively calm under the Fatah security apparatus, with the help of a committee comprised of 17 Palestinian military factions to handle security incidents.
The truce seems forgone and Islamic factions seem restless once more. “Recent incidents were blamed on members of Jund al-Sham, fallen out of the jurisdiction of Osbat al-Ansar,”admits the source.
Jund al-Sham was dismantled a few years ago, some of its members joining Osbat al-Ansar in the Safsaf area, while others beefed up the remnants of Fatah al-Islam, taking residence in the infamous Tawarik and Hotein quarters of the camp. Now, an estimated 100 Islamist militants have taken shelter in these districts.
Security sources in the camp and Palestinian leaders fear that members of the already-dismantled Islamist faction Jund al-Sham have joined forces with what’s left of Fatah al-Islam to form a new organization that could complicate the security situation in the Ain al-Hilweh.
Al-Lino was not hurt in any of the recent spate of attacks, but several of his bodyguards have been assassinated or injured. Last Saturday, Amer Fustoq was shot dead. The same day, Fatah officer Talal al-Ordoni was injured in an ambush in the camp’s vegetable market. Three other people were wounded in the process. A few days earlier, a Jund al-Sham militant killed Ashraf al-Qaderi, another bodyguard protecting Al-Lino.
“Al-Qaderi’s assassination was an act of revenge,” Issa told NOW Lebanon, adding that he believes the incident was linked to the foiled attempt on his life a few months ago on August 5. Two members of the Islamist faction Jund al-Sham, Mahmoud Abdel-Kader and Abou Kharroub, were involved in the bombing.
Al-Lino has also accused Fatah al-Islam’s new so-called emir, Oussama al-Shehabi, of ordering the assassination. Shehabi is said to have replaced Abdul Rahman Awad at the head of Fatah al-Islam, deemed a terrorist group by the Lebanese state which fought a three-month war with the faction in the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in North Lebanon, in the summer of 2007.
“Jund al-Sham is definitely getting bolder,” said a security source inside the camp, on condition of anonymity.
Issa’s statements also imply that the Islamist factions are becoming more difficult to control by the day, while assassination attempts against Fatah members are increasing with intensity. “There was another assassination attempt last week on the life of Uday Othman, another member of Fatah,” Issa explained.
Sporadic gunfire erupted in Ain al-Hilweh after a brawl between a Fatah member and Abed Fodah, a Jund al-Sham militant. It seems that Fatah had tried arresting Fodah a few days earlier, but was freed by members of Osbat al-Ansar, another radical organization involved in terrorist activities in the nineties.
The new wave of violence reveals that Fatah members and the Islamists have old scores to settle. Over the past four years, dozens of Jund al-Sham members were killed in gunfights and bombings which remain unsolved. Security sources inside the camp have repeatedly accused Fatah members of assassinating the Islamist leaders one by one.
Issa continues to blame Jund al-Sham for the recent wave of violence. “[These] renegades are seeking to provoke tension and create a confrontation between Fatah and the Islamic forces, which we are working to avoid,” he said.
But other Palestinian leaders fear that a new, mysterious faction is rising. Others such as Hajj Maher Oueid, head of Ansar Allah, an Islamic faction close to Hezbollah, said that “initial investigations are now pointing to the involvement of a third faction, which is playing the two sides against one other.” Hajj Maher refused to name the “third faction.”
Arabic daily Al-Hayat also mentioned the rise of a new Palestinian faction. The paper named former Jund al-Sham member Haitham Chaabi and ex-Fatah al-Islam fighter Naeem Abbas as possible members. Abbas was said to have links with Al-Qaida and is wanted for his involvement in bombings targeting UNIFIL convoys in South Lebanon.
Security sources within the camp do not seem, however, very optimistic. Given their limited resources, Jund al-Sham cannot afford to engage on its own in a full-fledged war against Fatah, which remains the dominant faction inside the southern camp. That is why, sources say, the party could have obtained the backing of another Islamic Palestinian faction.
Sources underline that this mysterious third faction is currently deployed within the camp as well as in the outskirts of the southern city of Saida. If their assumptions are confirmed, the third faction will further complicate the political equation in Ain al-Hilweh.
To read more: http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticleDetails.aspx?ID=344903#ixzz1hKk1RMn2
Only 25% of a given NOW Lebanon article can be republished. For information on republishing rights from NOW Lebanon: http://www.nowlebanon.com/Sub.aspx?ID=125478
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