The Mieh Mieh Palestinian refugee camp in South Lebanon is now a safe area, free of weapons, following the implementation of an agreement between Lebanese and Palestinian authorities.
The camp witnessed in November 2018 armed clashes between the Fatah and Ansarallah groups, which left several people dead or injured.
On Friday, Palestinian factions began the removal of barricades, fortifications and weapons. The Lebanese army reinforced its presence at the main entrance of the camp, patrolling the main street from up to the village of Mieh Mieh.
Lebanese military sources said the agreement called for the removal of heavy weapons from the camps over two installments. The army intelligence would patrol the camp with Palestinian forces. The army will eventually impose its control over the entire camp.
Weapons will be limited to guards tasked with protecting Palestinian faction offices. Remaining arms will be stored in warehouses, revealed Fatah sources. They added that the camp will not become “weapons-free, but secure.”
The agreement was met with relief among Palestinian refugees in the camp, as well as the Lebanese residents living in its surrounding areas, after the recent clashes that forced dozens of people to leave their homes.
The Palestinian forces have been entrusted with arresting any person who violates the agreement and handing him over to the Lebanese army, well-informed sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.
“There is a general tendency among the Palestinians living in Lebanon to put an end to the spread of arms in the camps out of their conviction that the they no longer serve their cause, but instead serve external forces,” said Hassan Mneimneh, head of the Lebanese-Palestinian Dialogue Committee.
Joint security committees, including representatives of the most prominent Palestinian factions, control the security in the camps of Ain el-Hilweh, Beddawi and Burj al-Barajneh, the largest concentrations of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon.
