ISF reveals new details about killing of woman in Shatila camp last month, says main suspect still at large

BEIRUT — The Internal Security Forces (ISF)'s Information Branch revealed on Wednesday more details about a murder that took place in the Palestinian refugee camp of Shatila in Beirut's southern suburbs on Oct. 28 when an individual opened fire at a young woman in the camp. According to the ISF, the latter has not been arrested yet.

The army has carried out several raids in Shatila in recent months in an attempt to curb illegal drug trafficking. The incident comes as Lebanese authorities, in parallel with Hezbollah’s disarmament process launched in early August, are also working to disarm Palestinian camps, where armed factions still maintain control of security.

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According to the ISF statement, on the same day, another woman Z.M. (born in 1986, Lebanese) who was present at the scene of the crime was arrested in Sahret al-Choueifat. During questioning, she confessed that a "man identified as (H. H.) was the one who opened fire with a handgun at the victim, whom she knows by the name Nancy,” the statement adds. According to Z.M., the person who opened fire works inside the Shatila camp for a drug dealer. Z.M. also admitted that she uses drugs and obtains them from inside the Shatila camp from the aforementioned individual. The ISF added that efforts are still underway to arrest (H. H.).

On Oct. 29, one day after the crime, the Palestinian National Security Forces handed over five suspects to the Lebanese Army as part of the investigation into the murder. The ISF did not mention these suspects in their statement.

A Fatah official told L’Orient Today back then that the victim was not a resident of the camp but regularly visited to buy and use drugs. Her body was found in an area known as a drug-selling hub frequented by users from across Beirut. According to the same source, a dispute broke out between the woman and the suspect before it turned violent.

The murder in Shatila happened one day after a young man, Elio Abou Hanna, was killed near the camp when armed men controlling a checkpoint opened fire at his car, sparking intense outrage.