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.



Five ISIS Bombs Found Hidden in Iconic Mosul Mosque in Iraq

(FILES) This picture taken on January 18, 2022 shows renovations at the al-Nuri mosque in the old town of Iraq's northern city Mosul. (Photo by Zaid AL-OBEIDI / AFP)
(FILES) This picture taken on January 18, 2022 shows renovations at the al-Nuri mosque in the old town of Iraq's northern city Mosul. (Photo by Zaid AL-OBEIDI / AFP)
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Five ISIS Bombs Found Hidden in Iconic Mosul Mosque in Iraq

(FILES) This picture taken on January 18, 2022 shows renovations at the al-Nuri mosque in the old town of Iraq's northern city Mosul. (Photo by Zaid AL-OBEIDI / AFP)
(FILES) This picture taken on January 18, 2022 shows renovations at the al-Nuri mosque in the old town of Iraq's northern city Mosul. (Photo by Zaid AL-OBEIDI / AFP)

A United Nations agency said it has discovered five bombs in a wall of Mosul's iconic Al-Nuri mosque, planted years ago by ISIS militants, during restoration work in the northern Iraqi city.

Five "large-scale explosive devices, designed to trigger a massive destruction of the site," were found in the southern wall of the prayer hall on Tuesday by the UNESCO team working at the site, a representative for the agency told AFP late Friday.

Mosul's Al-Nuri mosque and the adjacent leaning minaret nicknamed Al-Hadba or the "hunchback", which dates from the 12th century, were destroyed during the battle to retake the city from ISIS.

Iraq's army accused ISIS, which occupied Mosul for three years, of planting explosives at the site and blowing it up.

UNESCO, the UN cultural agency, has been working to restore the mosque and other architectural heritage sites in the city, much of it reduced to rubble in the battle to retake it in 2017.

"The Iraqi armed forces immediately secured the area and the situation is now fully under control," UNESCO added.

One bomb was removed, but four other 1.5-kilogram devices "remain connected to each other" and are expected to be cleared in the coming days, it said.

"These explosive devices were hidden inside a wall, which was specially rebuilt around them: it explains why they could not be discovered when the site was cleared by Iraqi forces" in 2020, the agency said.

Iraqi General Tahseen al-Khafaji, spokesperson for the Joint Operations Command of various Iraqi forces, confirmed the discovery of "several explosive devices from ISIS militants in Al-Nuri mosque."

He said provincial deminers requested help from the Defense Ministry in Baghdad to defuse the remaining munitions because of their "complex manufacturing".

Construction work has been suspended at the site until the bombs are removed.

It was from Al-Nuri mosque that Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, the then-leader of ISIS, proclaimed the establishment of the group's "caliphate" in July 2014.