DAILY NEWS
Friday Night Explosion in Burj Al Shemali Camp, Tyre | Three Killed in Shooting During Funeral of Hamas Supporter From Blast
After a large explosion occurred in Burj Al Shemali, a Palestinian refugee camp in Tyre, around a dozen civilian casualties were reported. Hamas said in a statement on Saturday that the blast was caused by an electrical fault in a warehouse containing oxygen and gas cylinders for coronavirus patients, as well as detergents and disinfectants, however, there is suspicion that the explosion was caused by the detonation of a stockpile of their weapons. [Deutsche Welle] Hamas reported that three members were killed and others injured in a shooting on Sunday in the Palestinian camp of Burj al-Shemali in Lebanon, following alleged clashes between Fatah-aligned gunmen and members of Hamas. [Reuters]
Minister of Interior Says Elections Likely to Happen in May
Minister of Interior Bassam Al-Mawlawi said that December 27th is the deadline by which the electoral law can be amended and the elections rescheduled. Minister Mawlawi also indicated that he will not issue an official decree appointing a date for elections, signed off by the President of the Republic, before an agreement is settled between President Aoun and Prime Minister Miqati. According to him, President Aoun is unlikely to sign off on a March 27th date for Parliamentary elections.[Naharnet]
ISF Thwarts Captagon Smuggling Attempt Bound for Saudi Arabia
“The Internal Security Forces (ISF) announced Saturday that it busted an attempt to smuggle a large quantity of captagon narcotics to Saudi Arabia, days after Lebanon’s interior minister said that country was undertaking efforts to curtail the outflow of illicit goods from the country.” [L’Orient Today]
OPINION & ANALYSIS
Raseef 22
Innocents Fall Down Along the “Road to Jerusalem,” Why is Disarmament of Palestinian Arms Impossible in Lebanon?
Hussein Chaaban
Chaaban writes, “[Zeina Al-Helou] reveals that the Lebanese security apparatus is “involved in the regime of mafias that is imposed over Palestinian refugees in the camps,” and explains that “the Lebanese state is too weak to touch the weapons of the camps, or decide to remove them. Therefore, the security apparatus has established a network of relationships and interests with the armed factions, planting informants with the thought that they are being smart, or that they have [the camps] under control.”
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in these articles are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of the American Task Force on Lebanon, a non-profit, nonpartisan leadership organization of Lebanese-Americans.