The killing of Elio Abou Hanna: Palestinian camp authorities hand over 4 suspects to Lebanese Army

BEIRUT — The Palestinian National Security Forces handed over four individuals — wanted over the killing of a young Lebanese man — to the Lebanese Army on Tuesday.

The head of the Public Relations and Media Department in the Palestinian National Security Forces, Abdel al-Hadi al-Asadi, told L'Orient Today that at around 2 p.m. on Tuesday, the Palestinian National Security Forces handed over four individuals wanted in connection with the murder to the Lebanese Army intelligence.

The details you (may have) missed

Outrage after Lebanese man killed in Shatila: Palestinian official calls it 'tragic mistake'

Elio Abou Hanna, 24, was shot and killed by an armed Palestinian patrol in the eastern part of Shatila camp on Saturday night, after inadvertently entering the area while driving home from Beirut’s Badaro neighborhood. Seriously injured, he was taken to a hospital in Beirut’s southern suburbs, where he later succumbed to his wounds. The killing has sparked widespread outrage on social media and across Lebanon.

Disarmament

The Palestinian Authority (PA) ambassador to Lebanon, Mohammad al-Assaad, praised "the initiative taken by the Palestinian National Security Forces," while emphasizing the "role of the Lebanese Army in cooperation and coordination with the Palestinian forces to consolidate security and stability inside and outside the camps," according to the official National News Agency (NNA). He reiterated "the willingness to move forward with the handover of Palestinian weapons and the affirmation of Lebanese sovereignty over the entire national territory."

A deeper look

Disarming Palestinians: State reaches Ain al-Helweh, but the hardest part remains

The incident comes amid a broader effort by Lebanese authorities to disarm Palestinian camps nationwide, a process that began in early August alongside Hezbollah’s disarmament measures following the most recent war with Israel. The campaign so far remains incomplete. The PA, unlike Hamas and other factions, has been cooperative regarding its disarmament.

The Free Patriotic Movement said on Tuesday that the young man's death "is proof that the disarmament of Palestinian camps is nothing more than a ridiculous tragicomedy," while only a few weapons seizures have taken place in the camps in recent months.

Reporting contributed by our south Lebanon correspondent, Muntasser Abdallah.