Lebanon: Palestinian Investigations into Ain al-Hilweh Clashes Conclude

A member of the "Fatah" movement in Ain al-Hilweh camp during the clashes last July (AP)
A member of the "Fatah" movement in Ain al-Hilweh camp during the clashes last July (AP)
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Lebanon: Palestinian Investigations into Ain al-Hilweh Clashes Conclude

A member of the "Fatah" movement in Ain al-Hilweh camp during the clashes last July (AP)
A member of the "Fatah" movement in Ain al-Hilweh camp during the clashes last July (AP)

A committee that was formed at the beginning of August to investigate the recent armed incidents in Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp has completed its work and submitted its report to the competent authorities.

The committee was in charge of investigating the assassination of the Palestinian National Security Commander, Major General Mohammad al-Armoushi (Abu Ashraf) and his companions, during the clashes in Ain al-Hilweh camp, in addition to the killing of Abdell-Rahman Farhood, who was known for his affiliation with extremists.

The report was submitted to the Joint Palestinian Action Committee in Lebanon, which convened on Tuesday at the Palestinian Embassy in Beirut, in the presence of representatives of the Lebanese Army Command, the Amal Movement and other forces.

An official statement issued at the end of the meeting said that an agreement was reached on the follow-up mechanisms, which would begin with handing over the suspects to the Lebanese judiciary.

Ghassan Ayoub, a member of the Palestinian Joint Action Committee in Lebanon, said that the report included the names of the perpetrators, adding that the participants agreed to support efforts to hand them over to the competent judiciary.

In a statement to Asharq Al-Awsat, Ayoub explained that a deadline has been given to the forces concerned with communicating with extremist groups to persuade them to hand over the suspects.

In parallel, an explosion was heard inside the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp, located in southern Lebanon, at dawn on Wednesday, caused by a hand grenade, according to the National News Agency (NNA).

While no injuries were reported, Fatah sources inside the camp told Asharq Al-Awsat that the bomb was thrown by the extremists, “with the aim of creating tension, as they feel that they are in an impasse, and that no one is ready to provide them with political cover.”

Ain al-Hilweh witnessed six days of violent fighting between the Fatah movement and extremist Islamist groups. The round of fighting resulted in 12 deaths and more than 65 wounded. Hundreds of families have escaped the camp, while many residents still fear the renewal of clashes at any moment.



Close Aide of Syria President Dies after Car Crash

Luna al-Shibl, a member of the Syrian government delegation arrives to meet UN-Arab League envoy for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi on January 24, 2014 at the "Geneva II" peace talks in Geneva. (AFP)
Luna al-Shibl, a member of the Syrian government delegation arrives to meet UN-Arab League envoy for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi on January 24, 2014 at the "Geneva II" peace talks in Geneva. (AFP)
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Close Aide of Syria President Dies after Car Crash

Luna al-Shibl, a member of the Syrian government delegation arrives to meet UN-Arab League envoy for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi on January 24, 2014 at the "Geneva II" peace talks in Geneva. (AFP)
Luna al-Shibl, a member of the Syrian government delegation arrives to meet UN-Arab League envoy for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi on January 24, 2014 at the "Geneva II" peace talks in Geneva. (AFP)

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's media adviser Luna al-Shibl died on Friday three days after being injured in a car crash, Assad's office announced.

"The presidency of the Syrian Arab Republic mourns the death of the adviser Luna al-Shibl, who passed away today after a serious car accident", it said in a statement.

"She served in recent years as a director of the political and media office of the presidency and then as a special adviser to the presidency," it added.

State media reported on Tuesday that she had suffered a "cerebral hemorrhage" which required emergency surgery after her car "veered off the road".

The 48-year-old rose to prominence for quitting a prestigious journalism career at Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera to become Assad's media adviser at a time when Damascus was cracking down on peaceful protesters in 2011, triggering Syria's ongoing civil war.

But her role expanded well beyond communications, carving out a place within Assad's inner circle as she accompanied him to high-level meetings in Syria and on his rare visits abroad.

She played an important role during the most intense years of the war and was part of the delegation to ultimately doomed peace talks in 2014.

Britain-based war monitor, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, reported earlier this week that she had fallen out of official favor in recent months and her brother had been arrested.

"There was growing dissatisfaction with her within the regime," said Observatory director Rami Abdulrahman.

"Accusations surfaced that she leaked minutes of closed meetings between Assad and Iranian officials," Abdulrahman added.

Syrian intelligence arrested her brother "on charges of communicating with a party hostile to Syria" after Israel struck the Iranian consulate in Damascus in April, the monitor said.

In 2020, Washington sanctioned Shibl and her husband Ammar Saati, with the US Treasury saying at the time that "she has been instrumental in developing Assad's false narrative that he maintains control of the country and that the Syrian people flourish under his leadership".