Lebanon’s Ain el-Hilweh Clashes Leave 11 Injured

Local Editor

At least 11 people were injured on Tuesday in renewed gunfights at the Ain el-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near the southern city of Sidon, the National News Agency reported. "Fighting has ended in Ain el-Hilweh and we're now investigating the circumstances of the incident," Naharnet news website quoted al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades commander Munir al-Maqdah as saying. "The situation will not deteriorate and we will not allow any party to drag the camp into the abyss," Maqdah added. The Fatah leader noted that the Palestinian factions all agree on the need to preserve security in the camp and the surrounding areas, while denying the presence of the al-Qaida-linked al-Nusra Front in the camp. NNA said that the fighting erupted between the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command and the supporters of Bilal Badr at al-Fawqani neighborhood in the camp. The gunmen used machineguns and mortar shells in the fighting which came a day after one person was killed and several others injured. Ain el-Hilweh residents later held a march to ask for an end to the infighting. Monday's gunfight erupted between Fatah al-Islam and Fatah after Bilal Badr, a former Fatah al-Islam member, was targeted in a shooting. Ain el-Hilweh, the largest Palestinian camp in the country, is home to about 50,000 refugees.

Source: Websites 12-03-2013 - 19:07 Last updated 12-03-2013 - 19:07

خطران مُخيفان يتهدّدان مخيّم عين الحلوة وصيدا

‏الأربعاء‏، 13‏ آذار‏، 2013

أوقات الشام
 ناجي س. البستاني

بات الوضع في مخيّم "عين الحلوة" الأكبر والأكثر كثافة بين كل مخيّمات اللاجئين الفلسطينيّين في لبنان، خطيراً إلى درجة يُخشى معها من إنفجار الوضع الأمني بأيّ لحظة، ليس بشكل إطلاق نار من هنا ومواجهة سريعة من هناك، كما حصل أخيراً، وكما يحصل بتقطّع منذ سنوات طويلة، ولكن بشكل شامل ومدمّر قد يُدخِل معه مدينة صيدا والقرى والبلدات المحيطة بعاصمة الجنوب، بدوّامة من العنف التي يصعب ضبطها.

 الخطر الأوّل الذي يتهدّد المخيّم يتمثّل في أن تصطدم القوى والفصائل التي باتت متداخلة جداً داخل المخيّم بعضها مع بعض. فإذا كان ما يجمعها نظرياً هو "العدوّ الإسرائيلي" و"تحرير فلسطين"، فإنّ ما يفرّقها فعلياً يبدأ بالسلطة وبالنفوذ داخل المخيّم، ويمرّ بتناقض مصالحها ومصالح المرجعيّات والدول الخارجية التي تدعمها وتموّلها، ولا ينتهي بنيّة بعض الميليشيات الفلسطينيّة بالدخول طرفاً بالصراع في لبنان وسوريا، في مقابل رفض ميليشيات وقوى أخرى أيّ شكل من أشكال التدخّل لمناصرة هذا الطرف أو ذاك. إشارة إلى أنّ موازين القوى بين الجهات المسلّحة في مخيّم "عين الحلوة" حالت في الماضي دون الإنجراف إلى الإقتتال الداخلي الواسع، حيث كانت حركة "فتح" المدعومة من السلطة الفلسطينية، تتهيّب حركة "حماس" ومعها "تحالف القوى الإسلاميّة" التي نمت بدعم من سوريا إعتباراً من العام 1993، بعد توقيع السلطة الفلسطينية آنذاك إتفاق "أوسلو". لكن هذا الوضع تبدّل اليوم، مع دخول مئات المسلّحين من خارج سكّان المخيّم، وحتى من خارج الحدود اللبنانية، وتوزّعهم على "زعماء أزقّة" يدير كلّ منهم بضع عشرات من المقاتلين، تحت أسماء لا تُعدّ ولا تُحصى لمنظّمات حديثة المنشأ! وبالتالي، لا مرجعيّة موحّدة لضبط تصرّفات القوى المتطرّفة، من أمثال "جند الشام" و"فتح الإسلام" و"عصبة الأنصار" و"كتائب عبد الله عزّام"، إلخ. ومن الممكن تحرّك هذه القوى، بشكل إفرادي أو جَماعي، بناء على مخطّط تكتيكي داخلي أو بناء على توجيهات إستراتيجيّة خارجية. وعندها قد تتورّط الكثير من القوى الفلسطينية في صراع دموي لا تريده، لكنها ستكون بموقف العاجز عن منع نشوبه!

الخطر الثاني والأكبر يتمثّل في أن تنجرف قوى فلسطينية من داخل المخيّم بالصراع اللبناني الداخلي، ليس على مستوى لعبة "الكباش السياسي" فحسب، بل بشكل عسكري أيضاً. وفي هذا السياق، تقوم قوى إسلاميّة متطرّفة، خاصة من الجهات الوافدة حديثاً إلى داخل المخيّم، بتعبئة بعض الشبّان مذهبياً ضدّ جهات لبنانية، ومنها "حزب الله"، وضدّ نظام الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد، وكل القوى المحلّية والإقليميّة التي تدعمه. ومع كل خضّة داخلية في لبنان، كان التوتّر يبلغ ذروته في صفوف مناصري هذه القوى. وصحيح أنّ الجيش اللبناني يملك لوائح إسميّة بحق العشرات من المطلوبين من القضاء اللبناني، والكثير من المتّهمين متورّط بجرائم ضدّ عناصر الجيش أو ضد مواطنين مدنيّين لبنانيّين وأجانب، وبعضهم متهم بتدبير عمليات ضد "قوات اليونيفل"، لكن الأصحّ أنّ الكثير من القوى الفلسطينيّة داخل المخيّم تعمل على تجاوز الإجراءات الأمنيّة المحيطة به، وعلى تهريب المسلّحين والسلاح، تارة من خارج المخيّم إليه، تحت ستار تحرّك اللاجئين الفلسطينيّين الهاربين من القتال في سوريا، وطوراً من المخيّم إلى خارجه، بحجّة العودة إلى الديار في سوريا. والمشكلة أنّ أمن مخيّم "عين الحلوة" الذي يقع على بُعد ما يقارب ثلاثة كيلومترات عن قلب مدينة صيدا، يعني حكماً أمن "عاصمة الجنوب" وكل القرى والبلدات المحيطة، وكذلك أمن الطريق السريع أو شريان كل الجنوب! ولا حاجة للتذكير بالكلفة البشريّة الباهظة لأيّ معركة فعليّة وجدّية، إن داخل مخيّم "عين الحلوة" المليء بالأحياء وبالأزقّة الضيّقة ضمن مساحة جغرافية لا تتجاوز الكيلومتر المربّع الواحد، والمكتظّ بالسكان بشكل مخيف حيث تجاوز عدد قاطنيه حالياً الثمانين ألف نسمة، أو بين جهات من داخل المخيّم وقوى أخرى من خارجه، وربّما مع الجيش اللبناني الذي يزنّر المخيّم، والذي له تواجد كبير في "تعمير عين الحلوة".

وفي الخلاصة، صحيح أنّ قائد "كتائب شهداء الأقصى"، اللواء منير المقدح، أكّد أنّ لا وجود لجبهة النصرة في مخيّم "عين الحلوة"، وأنّ الوضع الأمني لن يتفاقم، وكذلك فعلت قيادات فلسطينيّة عدّة، لكن كل المؤشّرات على الأرض تؤكّد أنّ الوضع الأمني فيه بلغ مرحلة متقدّمة من الهشاشة، في ظلّ إستمرار توافد لاجئين من خارج الحدود، خاصة من مخيّم "اليرموك" في سوريا. وبالتالي، في حال وجود شرارة داخلية أو إقليمية بحجم مهمّ، قد ينفجر الوضع داخل المخيّم بشكل واسع وخارج عن سيطرة ليس "القوّة الأمنيّة الفلسطينيّة المشتركة" فحسب، بل خارج عن سيطرة القوى الأمنيّة اللبنانية المحيطة بالمخيّم أيضاً. وعندها ستكون أحداث مخيّم "نهر البارد" الفظيعة والمؤسفة جداً، مجرّد نزهة نسبة إلى ما قد يحدث في حال إنفجار الوضع في مخيّم "عين الحلوة"، مع ما له من إمتدادات في صيدا وفي العمق اللبناني وصولاً إلى دمشق!

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Coming Soon: Al-Nusra Front in Lebanon

These Lebanese groups have plans to merge militarily and organizationally into a unified Lebanese chapter of al-Nusra Front. (Photo: Marwan Tahtah)

By: Nasser Charara

Published Monday, February 25, 2013

Lebanon has become an integral part of the plans of al-Nusra Front. Al-Qaeda’s fastest-growing offshoot is seeking to merge Lebanon’s extreme Islamist factions into a united front.

In mid-February, at a location in the barren hills surrounding the Lebanese town of Ersal, H. A. Dergham posed for pictures with dozens of his armed followers. Under the banner of Syria’s al-Nusra Front and behind a table draped with the Syrian “revolutionary” flag, he brandished a rocket-propelled grenade launcher in one hand and made a victory sign with the other.

Dergham is a principal suspect in the February 2013 attack on an army patrol near Ersal in which a captain and lieutenant were killed and several soldiers injured. The assault followed the attempted arrest of Khaled Hamid, who was described as the top al-Nusra Front “facilitator” in Lebanon.

Dergham’s group also works closely with al-Nusra Front in Syria, and has been playing a leading role in plans to establish a “branch” of the organization in Lebanon.

Al-Nusra Front was formed in Syria in 2011. It rapidly grew into the most prominent of all the country’s armed opposition groups once it was joined by like-minded former members of the Lebanese-based groups Jund al-Sham and Fatah al-Islam.

In March 2012, a group led by Majed Bin-Mohammed al-Majed, Saudi emir or “commander” of the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, moved from the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp in South Lebanon to Syria.

Their intended aim was to take over the leadership of al-Nusra Front, and replace its commander, known as Abu-Mohammed al-Joulani, with Majed. But once in Syria, many of his followers turned against him and sided with Joulani. He returned to Ain al-Hilweh.

Meanwhile, the ex-members of Fatah al-Islam and Jund al-Sham got on with the task of training and organizing Joulani’s men. Within a few months they managed to improve al-Nusra Front’s performance and organization, turning it into the most formidable armed faction in Syria and an important front for al-Qaeda’s global jihad.

Al-Nusra Front’s Reach in Lebanon

Currently, about a year and half since its launch, the Front has a network of associated groups based in Lebanon. Its members come from a variety of different countries, which provide it with logistical, material, and combat support, especially in its battles in the vicinities of Homs and Damascus.

These Lebanese groups have plans to merge militarily and organizationally into a unified Lebanese chapter of al-Nusra Front. Dergham’s group is the most closely associated with the plan. Based around Ersal, it provides extensive logistical support to al-Nusra Front.

The rise of Islamist forces with an ideological affinity to al-Qaeda was aided by the declining influence of Fatah and the other Palestinian nationalist factions in Ain al-Hilweh. Their involvement in the Syrian jihad has bolstered support for their extremist views. This is at the expense of Hamas’ Usbat al-Ansar, to whom they previously used to defer in exchange for protection.

The other main component of the planned Lebanese al-Nusra Front is the so-called Tripoli bloc, consisting mainly of Hussam al-Sabbagh’s group of 300-400 fighters in the city. A number of smaller groups based in North Lebanon and the Bekaa are also expected to join the merged organization.

One proposal, espoused by Sabbagh, is to establish a single Islamic emirate spanning from North Lebanon to the Homs countryside. Another suggestion is to mount a series of surprise actions in different parts of Lebanon, with the aim of suddenly raising security tensions throughout the country, and announcing: We’re here, our time has come.

Reports indicate that the organizational steps needed to form the merged Lebanese al-Nusra Front are complete, but the Front is awaiting the right political circumstances for its launch.

This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition.

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Al-Nusra Front: Seeking a Lebanese Base in Ain al-Hilweh

Fighters from the al-Nusra front sit in their tank near Taftanaz military airport in northern Syria. (Photo: Abdalghne Karoof - Reuters)

By: Amal Khalil, Qassem Qassem

Published Monday, February 4, 2013

The presence of the notorious al-Nusra Front is no longer exclusive to Syria. In the southern Lebanese city of Saida, a group of Islamist factions based out of the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp are unifying in the hope of forming a Lebanese version of the Front.

The proposed coalition will include: the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, Fatah al-Islam, Jund al-Sham, and some former members of Usbat al-Ansar, and the Islamic Jihad Movement.

Ain al-Hilweh security officials confirmed that armament and the fortification of security points in the Taware neighborhood continue at an escalating rate. The Islamists are in control of “50 percent of the camp area, while all the other factions control the remaining 50 percent.”

Lately, supporters of the front have been conducting military training in the Basatin area of the camp in broad daylight and without the customary masks.

The anticipated formation will include Islamists who split from Usbat al-Ansar and the Islamic Jihad Movement. These factions objected to their groups’ “moderation” and accused them of apostasy.

A meeting of the planned unified front was held a few days ago with several known Islamist activists in attendance: Haytham and Mohammed al-Saadi, Bilal Badr, Tawfic Taha, Usama al-Shehabi, and Majed al-Majed, as well as a Saudi national and two Syrians. The goal of the meeting was to set a suitable time for the front’s launch. They issued an internal statement to its members confirming the “apostasy” ruling.

Usbat al-Ansar and the Islamic Jihad Movement continue to face problems, as several members of both Islamist groups defected to join the anticipated new faction. However, a prominent Islamist official in the camp maintained that the above is merely “speculation.”

Nevertheless, the last few months have witnessed the emergence of a new generation of Islamist leaders born from the Syrian crisis. Young men are now leading groups of even younger men. They hail from completely different ideological and political backgrounds, but seek to join what could be viewed as the remnants of Fatah al-Islam and Jund al-Sham. Their star player is Bilal Badr, who has been mentioned in the media lately for his “activities” related to avenging eight camp residents killed in Syria, including the nephew of sheikh Jamal Suleiman, and several who were injured, including Badr’s “deputy” Mohammed al-Afandi.

Badr and his assistant, Nidal Abdul-Rahman, decided to remove the pro-Syrian factions from the Ain al-Hilweh camp, attacking the headquarters of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command (PFLP-GC) and al-Saiqa with machineguns. They removed pictures of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and asked the occupants to leave the premises. Badr supporters attacked a Fatah checkpoint, disarmed its guard, and refused to hand him to the Palestinian National Security force.

According to Palestinian security sources, several neighborhoods of the camp are now under the control of Badr and his colleagues, namely the neighborhood of Tiri where he lives. The Taware neighborhood is no longer controlled by National Security or the Lebanese army and has been transformed into a den of Salafi groups following the influx of weapons and fighters from Syria.

Attempts to contact Badr were unsuccessful. He is difficult to track down. The only intermediary to reach him is one of his relatives, an official in the Popular Committees and the Palestinian Liberation Front (PLF), who described Badr as a “21 year old who has yet to grow a beard.”

This relative adds that Badr himself was a member of the PLF and that “the name Bilal was after one of the martyrs of the Lebanese Resistance Brigades [Amal].” He refused to let us contact Badr because “he wakes up late in the day and stays awake all night.”

Does he stay awake for military training or security courses? “No. He is at home like anyone else.” So, is everything that is said about him lies and rumors? The relative retained some mystery, admitting that “bold Bilal” belongs to the Islamist current, but is not involved in military activities. As for a future meeting, the relative relayed Badr’s greetings along with a promise to be interviewed “at the right time.”

An informed Palestinian source told Al-Akhbar that claims against Badr are exaggerated, despite him being “a tool to carry out operations inside the camp in the last months.” Although Badr leads a group of more than 20 young men, he takes his orders from the godfather Taha and the mastermind Shehabi, who move freely around the camp. There are five or six other groups similar to Badr’s that are linked to Shehabi, Taha, Haitham, and Mohammed al-Shaabi.

'... Near the Airport... '

Once announced, this new unified front will be an extension of al-Nusra in Syria. Lebanese territories will become “the land of salvation” for its “jihadis” who will be trained in Ain al-Hilweh to fight in Syria. Of course, the front will not be limited to Ain al-Hilweh. Other sources indicate that there is interest in creating another branch in the Burj al-Barajneh Palestinian camp in Dahiyeh, or Beirut’s southern suburbs. Palestinian sources indicate that the reason for the Burj al-Barajneh headquarters is its proximity to the airport road.

This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition.

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