Tensions in the Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp are mounting as camp residents and newly displaced Palestinians from Syria accuse the United Nations and Relief Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) of neglecting the new arrivals.
The displaced refugees decided to resort to force against UNRWA's centersPalestinians from the camp and arrived from Syria joined forces last week to storm the local UNRWA director's office. Residents say the agency has refused to take responsibility for the newcomers and they are skeptical of UNRWA’s claims that it lacks sufficient funds.
The displaced refugees apparently decided to resort to force against UNRWA's centers, specifically targeting its new director Fadi al-Saleh.
According to sources, Palestinian officials were in the middle of a meeting with Saleh last Wednesday when a member of Fatah identified as Mohammad K arrived seeking help for some of the displaced Palestinians from Syria. When UNRWA staff failed to respond, the man sprayed a fire extinguisher into the meeting room in a fit of anger. The Palestinian officials' bodyguards shot Mohammad K in the foot and he returned fire. No deaths were reported.
This was not the first incident of its kind. Some camp residents and displaced Palestinians from Syria had previously attacked and occupied an agency center after accusing UNRWA of being unresponsive to requests for housing for the displaced. The protesters left the center after securing promises from UNRWA to assist the newcomers.
Palestinian officials in Ain al-Hilweh said the attacks were intended to "teach the new director a lesson," adding that the refugees are not convinced that UNRWA lacks funds, as it claims.
One Palestinian official, who wished to remain anonymous, said that UNRWA's general budget includes funds allocated specifically for Syria's Palestinian refugees.
"Since some of these refugees fled to Lebanon, UNRWA should divert part of its Syria-allocated funds to Lebanon to help the displaced here," the official said.
Another official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said arguments have broken out between the camp’s original residents and the arrivals from Syria.
Arguments have broken out between the camp’s original residents and the arrivals from Syria."Ain al-Hilweh's people received and hosted the displaced and there were no problems in the beginning," he said. "But they overstayed their welcome when the social conditions of the camp's residents went from bad to worse."
Meanwhile, UNRWA local staff members complain that the Syrian crisis has placed an additional burden on the agency. According to one UNRWA employee, "international attention is now focused on helping displaced Syrians and donor countries' funds are going directly to them."
The UNRWA employee, who did not wish to be identified, denied that UNRWA is holding back resources, adding that the agency "is seeking to secure from donor countries specific funds for the displaced Palestinians from Syria, but our efforts have not yet succeeded."
The same source expressed his frustration over the situation, saying: "If half of what is paid in Syria is given to the displaced Palestinians, matters would have been much better. But the Palestinians are no longer a top priority."
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