Armed men in the Palestinian camp of Beddaoui in north Lebanon, June 7, 2024. (Photo courtesy of Michel Hallak)
BEDDAWI, Tripoli — A gunfight broke out between rival families in the Beddawi Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon on Friday afternoon, injuring three people, including a child.
Gunmen exchanged fire and rockets in the camp's main street, our correspondent in the region reported, and the entrances to the camp were closed. One of the wounded, who is in serious condition, was taken to a hospital in the camp to be treated, while ambulances worked to evacuate the other wounded.
As the fight continued, residents called on the camp's sheikhs and officials to intervene and call for restraint, according to reports circulating on social networks. By early evening, calm had been restored in Beddawi and a Lebanese Army patrol was deployed on the outskirts of the camp. Palestinian refugee camps generally have their own security systems and are beyond the control of the Lebanese state.
Lebanese Army patrols on the outskirts of Beddawi Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon following a gunfight between factions in the camp on June 7, 2024. (Photo courtesy of Michel Hallak)
According to our correspondent, there are reports that a meeting may be held between the camp's factions at the headquarters of the Palestinian security force inside the camp to follow up on the incident and to work towards de-escalating tensions, which had flared up after a young man was killed by a stray bullet on Monday in Beddaoui during a gunfight between the same two families.
The proliferation and accessibility of weapons is affecting not only Palestinian camps but the whole of Lebanon. Whether pulled out during a fight, as in the Beddawi case, or used to fire into the air during weddings and funerals, these weapons are the source of countless stray bullets, which often strike, sometimes kill, people nearby.
Reporting contributed by Michel Hallak.
