08 June 2007
BEIRUT: The Lebanese Army pushed its assault on the remaining Fatah al-Islam militants in the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp on Thursday, even as religious leaders held talks with the gunmen in an attempt to bring about their surrender. Tanks and helicopters regularly shelled the besieged militants, who responded with mortar and sniper fire.
After two days without army casualties, a Lebanese soldier was killed by a Fatah al-Islam sniper on Thursday and three others were wounded, a military source confirmed, bringing the total number of troops killed to 47. The soldier killed on Thursday was identified as Sergeant Walid Ahmad Abdo, born in 1975 and a resident of Akkar in North Lebanon, the home of many army troops.
The Islamic Action Front, meanwhile, delegated several people within the camp to hold talks with senior members of Fatah al-Islam, as rumors circulated that a sheikh in the camp had issued a fatwa calling on the militants never to surrender and to "martyr" themselves instead.
"Religious reason is the only way now to reach any solution with Fatah al-Islam," a member of the Islamic Action Front told The Daily Star, requesting anonymity so as not to compromise his contact with the militants. The Islamic Action Front is composed of Sunni politicians and clerics close to Lebanon's political opposition.
"The concept of martyring themselves is heavily entrenched in their beliefs, and so we are trying to convince them that the sacrifice of surrendering themselves far outweighs the greater risks of continuing fighting," said the source.
"They are greatly opposed to just any religious figure imposing his principles on them, because they are determined to live and die by their convictions," he added.
Islamic Action Front leader Fathi Yakan told Reuters that the militants have reached a dead end and "the only thing that will convince them is Sharia and religious reason."
Several earlier efforts by Palestinian leaders to broker an end to the standoff have failed to end the fighting, which began on May 20. The battles are Lebanon's deadliest internal violence since the 1975-1990 Civil War, as more than 100 people have been killed in less than three weeks.
Fatah al-Islam spokesman Abu Salim Taha and deputy commander Abu Hureira have been unreachable for the past two days, and some reports claim they have been killed; Fatah al-Islam member Shahine Shahine has been speaking to the media.
"We will widen the scope of the attacks beyond Nahr al-Bared," if the army continues its "destructive bombardment," Shahine told AFP on Thursday.
An army source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the armed forces are in full control of the perimeter of the camp, including its access to the sea.
"We monitor the sea and prevent any infiltration into or out of the camp," said the army source. "Our Lebanese Navy is responding appropriately to any form of smuggling."
Prime Minister Fouad Siniora reiterated his government's commitment to eliminating Fatah al-Islam and called on the remaining militants to surrender. Siniora vowed on Thursday to give the militants "a fair trial" if they surrender to security forces.
"There is no leniency with terrorists ... and the government will give them a fair trial," Siniora told Kuwaiti television.
Speaking from Ramallah on Thursday, Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) representative in Lebanon Abbas Zaki said Palestinians in Lebanon should be permitted to set up "their own security force" in refugee camps to prevent the future formation of armed gangs such as Fatah al-Islam.
Zaki was quoted by the Associated Press as saying the PLO is proposing the establishment of a Palestinian security force of 4,000-5,000 members in the 12 camps throughout Lebanon.
Zaki said the fighting in Nahr al-Bared is in its final stages, and the militants are asking to be allowed to stay in the camp or to be given asylum in another country.
"But we say that they should go to court, because no one will accept them, and we will not accept them in our refugee camps [in Lebanon]," said Zaki. "They are not a political organization. They are just gangs."
Palestinian officials from the major factions have distanced themselves from Fatah al-Islam, referring to its members as outlaws who should surrender to the Lebanese authorities.
In other developments, the Lebanese judicial authorities charged three more Fatah al-Islam suspects with membership in a "terrorist organization."
Thirty-five Fatah al-Islam suspects are currently in custody, and those charged with "terrorism" could face the death sentence if convicted.
On the humanitarian front, some 45 refugees were evacuated from the Nahr al-Bared camp on Thursday by the Palestinian Red Crescent and the Lebanese Red Cross. The majority of
the evacuees were young men, who were questioned by the army. - With agencies
