SIDON, Lebanon: The newly formed elite security force responsible for stabilizing security in the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian camp will launch its security plan Tuesday, straight after a 1:30 p.m. ceremony, the force's commander told The Daily Star
“The deployment of the security force that includes all Palestinian factions in Ain al-Hilweh will begin [as soon as the ceremony concludes],” elite force commander Gen. Khaled Shayeb told The Daily Star.
The force's members were gathered along with political officials and residents, in the camp's Ziad al-Atrash Hall.
“It is backed and welcomed by all the residents of the camp as well as its parties and factions,” added Shayeb, who is a senior member of the Fatah Movement.
Shayeb will be assisted by a Hamas commander who will act as deputy head of the new force.
Asked about any expected resistance to the security force and its plan, Shayeb said that no factions have noted any remarks or pledged opposition.
“But we will not tolerate any security violation,” he said, moments before the beginning of the ceremony preceding the launch, where the parties’ officials would give speeches to announce the beginning of the widely welcomed security plan.
The 150-member force was formed in response to the infiltration of radical groups in the camp, as well as the fighting that had occurred between the Fatah Movement and the extremist Fatah al-Islam.
The elite security force includes members of both Fatah and Hamas, as well as all major Palestinian parties.
Fatah’s Lebanon leader Fathi Abu al-Ardat expressed his optimism about the success of the new security force.
“All the success elements of the security forces are there,” he told An-Nahar newspaper Tuesday. “Its action is supported by all Palestinian factions, and it answers security needs inside and outside the camp.”
Al-Ardat also said that the security force will not tolerate any suspicious actions aimed at involving the camp in internal Lebanese politics.
“The Palestinian factions insist on protecting the camp against strife,” he said. “And we don’t want it to be a letterbox for any party."
The elite force had their first meeting on July 3rd, where representatives of the different factions discussed the distribution and deployment of their forces.
It was decided that 40 members would carry out patrols and escorts, 30 for intervention or executive forces, 20 for social security, 35 for traffic, 25 prison guards and members of the inquiry committee, as well as members of the investigation and information committee, the technical team, the committee on social reform, awareness and guidance, as well as financial management.
A high-ranking Fatah official had told The Daily Star that the forces’ headquarters would be at the Ziad al-Atrash Hall and would include a prison to protect the new security status quo from any agitations.
He also told The Daily Star that the force would be deployed on Ain al-Hilweh’s main streets, specifically in areas that have witnessed significant security incidents such as the vegetable market, the Safsaf neighborhood, Fatah’s offices at the camp’s main entrance and the Jabal al-Halib area east of the camp.
In parallel to the security committee, a suggestion for a political committee has also been touted.
The head of the Lebanese-Palestinian Dialogue Committee met with Hamas’ political leader in Lebanon Monday to discuss a united Palestinian political committee.
“I call on Hamas and all Palestinian factions to play a natural role in fighting terrorism and combating the appearance of any cell in the camps,” said Hasan Mneimneh, expressing his full support for a political committee to work in coordination with the joint security force and the Lebanese government.
During the meeting, Hamas’ political head, Ali Barakeh, stressed the importance of forming a political committee comprised of all Palestinian factions in Ain al-Hilweh, adding that it was consensus among rival groups that allowed for the Palestinian elite security force to be formed.
“We will continue in a way that benefits from lessons of the past, by resorting to dialogue,” said Barakeh.
He regarded the project as the successful start of a wider Palestinian initiative, saying that “subsequent steps would initiate joint security and political forces in the Beddawi and Burj al-Barajneh camps.”
Barakeh pointed out that Hamas’ policy rejects intervention in internal Lebanese affairs and opposes any measure that would bring Lebanon into conflict with Israel.
This view was supported by Mneimneh, saying: “What the Lebanese hope for when it comes to Palestinians is what they hope for themselves – neutrality in the face of inter-Arab problems.”
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