Three days of fighting in the Ain Al-Hilweh “Palestinian refugee camp” in Lebanon have left at least 11 dead and dozens wounded, the UN agency for “Palestinian refugees” said on Monday, according to the AFP news agency.
Clashes broke out over the weekend between members of Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement and Islamist militants based in the camp, located in the coastal city of Sidon.
Renewed gunfire and shelling on Monday shook the camp, said an AFP correspondent in Sidon, sending frightened residents fleeing.
"According to reports, 11 were killed and another 40 were injured, including one staff member" of UNRWA, said Dorothee Klaus, the UN agency's director in Lebanon.
She added in a statement that UNRWA has "temporarily suspended" operations in the camp due to the fighting.
The warring factions said they had agreed on a truce on Sunday but it did not hold, with fighting continuing with automatic weapons and rocket fire.
Officials said five Fatah members and one Islamist militant had been killed in the initial violence over the weekend.
Ain Al-Hilweh is notorious for its lawlessness and violence is not uncommon. The UN says about 55,000 people live in the camp.
Lebanese residents who are registered as “Palestinian refugees” and their descendants who were born in that country reside in residential neighborhoods known as "refugee camps", have limited work options and are refused citizenship.
Lebanon refuses to naturalize the “Palestinian refugees” and has stressed the need to work for their return to their country of origin, which Palestinian Arabs claim is Israel.
Several years ago, Lebanese authorities launched a crackdown on foreign workers, including people registered as “Palestinian refugees”.
According to a population census conducted in 2017, there are 174,422 “Palestinian refugees” residing in Lebanon in 12 "refugee camps" and in 152 residential neighborhoods throughout the country.