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Truce reached in Lebanon's Palestinian camp after clashes

Xinhua, August 23, 2015 Adjust font size:

A cease-fire was reached between the Fatah movement and the Islamist "Jund el-Sham" in the Palestinian refugee camp of Ain el-Helwe in Lebanon's southern port city of Sidon Saturday, the National News Agency (NNA) reported.

The clashes between the two groups erupted suddenly Saturday afternoon following a failed assassination attempt that targeted Abou Ashraf al-Armoushi, the chief of national security at the camp and an official of the "Fatah" movement.

The murder attempt prompted Fatah gunmen to exchange fire with Jund al-Sham militants, leaving a Palestinian dead and five others injured.

The Palestinian Embassy in Lebanon and the Palestinian factions launched an initiative in an effort to reach a cease fire among Fatah and "Jund el-Sham", and succeeded in convincing the warring parties to end the clashes.

The Ain el-Helwe camp is the largest Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon and is known to be a safe haven for wanted Islamist militants and drug dealers.

According to a long standing agreement, the Lebanese security authorities do not enter the camp and the Palestinian factions take control of the security situation inside it. Endit