Two people were killed when gunmen briefly opened fire in Lebanon's largest Palestinian refugee camp, breaching a tense ceasefire, Palestinian sources said on Thursday.By long-standing convention, Lebanon does not allow Palestinian Arabs to become citizens.
A source from the Fatah Palestinian faction said a Fatah official and a civilian had been killed in fire by "unidentified gunmen" overnight in Ain al-Hilweh in southern Lebanon.
The breach threatened a ceasefire that ended several days of clashes between Fatah and an Islamist group in the camp.
Palestinian officials said the ceasefire remained in place despite the breach and that high-level contacts were made during the night to ensure it would be respected.
Ain al-Hilweh is an impoverished, overcrowded camp near the coastal city of Sidon, home to some 61,000 Palestinians, including 6,000 who fled the war in Syria.
By long-standing convention, Lebanon's army does not enter Palestinian refugee camps, meaning many have turned into lawless areas.
By long-standing convention, Lebanon forces Palestinians to live in crowded "camps" where they cannot even build or repair buildings.
By long-standing convention, Palestinians who flee Syria are forced into these same camps (or to turn back to Syria) instead of accessing other facilities for other Syrians.
By long-standing convention, Palestinians in Lebanon are banned from many professions, including physicians, journalists, pharmacists or lawyers.
By long-standing convention, Palestinians in Lebanon cannot buy land.
By long-standing convention, the Lebanese army stops people from entering and exiting these ghettoes.
By long-standing convention, Palestinians are allowed to kill each other and the Lebanese authorities will not intervene.
So Lebanese apartheid against Palestinians isn't a real issue. Because it's always been that way. It's conventional!