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Al-Ahram Weekly 18 - 24 November 1999 Issue No. 456 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 18 - 24 November 1999 Issue No. 456
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Special Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters What fate for the refugees?
By Zeina KhodrIn recent weeks numerous high-ranking Israeli officials have been calling for a unilateral Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon with or without an agreement with Beirut or Damascus. While Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak has yet to make his position clear, the French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine, who made a brief visit to Beirut, said that Israel intended to pull out and would do so unilaterally if necessary.
With Israeli intentions still unclear, Lebanese officials have started to map out plans for a potential withdrawal, warning that unilateral Israeli action in the absence of a wider agreement with Beirut and Damascus that encompassed the fate of Palestinian refugees would not bring peace. In fact, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad's recommencement of military operations in the south recently after a two-year silence is being interpreted as a "threat from Damascus to Israel".
Lebanese Prime Minister Selim Al-Hoss on Tuesday called upon radical Palestinian factions based in south Lebanon to refrain from carrying out attacks against Israel. He added that Lebanon "does not support any activity [against Israel] other than that of the Lebanese resistance," in a reference to Hizbullah.
Abdullah Salah, leader of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group based in Damascus, said he found the latest Lebanese reaction on the attack carried out by Jihad fighters exaggerated and astonishing. "The Islamic Jihad had always been operating in the south in coordination with the Lebanese resistance, and we consider ourselves to be part of this resistance. There is no reason for this noise which we are hearing today."
Jihad's military operations have come at the same time as Fatah's consolidation of power in the Palestinian refugee camps in the south of Lebanon, which has had alarm bells ringing in both Lebanon and Syria. Lebanese forces have responded by cracking down on the Palestinians, and two weeks ago a military court sentenced Fatah representative in Lebanon, Sultan Abu Ayneen, to death. He was convicted in absentia because Lebanese armed forces do not have access to the refugee camps.
Abu Ayneen, who lives in the Rashidiyeh camp in the southern port city of Tyre, had been charged with "heading an illegal organisation that aims to hurt Lebanon's security" and the illegal distribution of arms.
Commenting on the verdict, Abu Ayneen said that "it was not a judicial verdict. It has political goals that aim at targeting the entire Palestinian population. A powerful political body stands behind it, with the political programme of targeting and harming the future of refugees in Lebanon." He refused to say which powerful political body he meant.
The case has come as a surprise, since the numerous Palestinian factions that operate in Lebanon have been arming and training their militias for decades. "[Palestinian leader Yasser] Arafat was the real target," one observer commented. "The authorities wanted to tarnish his image."
Fatah, the main group in the PLO, lost much of its influence among refugees in Lebanon following the signing of the 1993 Oslo interim peace accords between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. However things changed three months ago, when the group attempted to regain its authority by reopening offices, recruiting some 400 new fighters in addition to the 1,700 men it already has and providing its supporters with arms. Forty-five Fatah fighters recently completed a military training course at the Ayn Al-Helweh refugee camp.
Such moves by Fatah have created anxiety in the camps, even though the movement has said that any restructuring is aimed only at improving security in the shantytowns.
According to observers, Beirut and Damascus fear that the fighters may play a role in the event of unilateral Israeli withdrawal.
"Arafat wants control of the Palestinian community here, and does not want them to fall into the hands of rejectionist Palestinian factions supported by Syria. He wants to remain the exclusive representative of the Palestinians, something which would strengthen his position in final peace talks with Israel," said one analyst.
It is against this background that Abu Ayneen's entry into the domestic political scene in Lebanon has come, and his actions have particularly irked the Lebanese authorities.
A prospective alliance between Palestinians and Lebanese Christians would not bode well for the government. The authorities are bent on ensuring that the Palestinians do not become naturalised Lebanese citizens, upsetting the delicate sectarian balance in the country, and they are adamant that Palestinians should not have a share in power. Many blame them for igniting and fuelling the Lebanese civil war, which raged from 1975 to 1990.
"Abu Ayneen's political activity is being interpreted as an attempt to rekindle the war and to re-establish political, and even possibly military groups, to resume arms distribution with the aim of creating instability," an observer said.
Abu Ayneen now faces arrest if he leaves the camp, and his immobility "means he will eventually lose support," Adnan Al-Saqi, a member of the Palestinian Popular Committee at Ayn Al-Helweh, said.
Meanwhile, Lebanon is preparing plans to avert any attempt by Palestinians to destabilise the situation if Israel withdraws. "There is a group that could cause trouble," Interior Minister Michel Al-Murr said. "When they train 400 members -- surely not to liberate Palestine -- we would like to know the reasons behind their actions."
Under the Cairo agreement signed by Lebanon and the Palestinians in 1969, Beirut relinquished police control of the camps. Lebanon unilaterally annulled that agreement in 1985, but Palestinians have retained control of camp security. Lebanese authorities have long abstained from entering the camps to prevent possible fighting, leaving them to be administered by local Palestinian factions.
However it remains to be seen whether the Lebanese authorities will enter the camps to capture the Fatah chief. Observers believe such a course of action is unlikely, since he is not the first Palestinian official to be indicted, and no action has yet been taken.
