Time for Bush to squeeze Israel again. Al Qaeda and the Taliban need a homeland too.
Posted on 06/22/2003 10:58:19 AM PDT by yonif
The Ain al-Hilwe Palestinian refugee camp in the Lebanese port city of Sidon has been infiltrated by some 200 al-Qaida and Taliban terrorists who are using it as a base for planning and launching attacks, Lebanese intelligence officials told the London-based Sunday Telegraph.
The officials blame the terror group, which calls itself Esbat al-Ansar (League of Warriors), for a rocket attack on the Future TV station in Beirut last Saturday night. The blast devastated the newsroom of the station, which is controlled by Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, but caused no injuries as no one was on duty at the time.
"The attack was planned from within the camp," one intelligence official was quoted as saying. "It's an extension of the campaign in Saudi Arabia. They want to hit at Saudi interests in Lebanon, to cause them problems."
The Taliban and al-Qaida terrorists arrived at the camp last year and seized control of a district known as Emergency Street after a bitter turf war with Fatah, whose leader boasted to the Telegraph about orchestrating suicide attacks in Israel.
Since then, Esbat has imposed Islamic customs on residents of the 100,000-strong camp. Three men are reported to have been killed in the past month after smuggling alcohol past Lebanese army checkpoints.
Streets in the Emergency quarter are patrolled by dozens of bearded men who turn away visitors they deem to be unwelcome. No women are visible.
Israeli intelligence officials were quoted as saying they believe that Faruk al-Masri, an Egyptian extremist who was murdered in March, led the group of terrorists who fled from Afghanistan after the 2001 war and reached Lebanon with help from Iran.
Al-Masri took control of Esbat after his arrival, transforming it from a Palestinian faction into a Muslim extremist organization. The group's previous leader, Abu Mohjen, a trusted ally of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, had sent dozens of fighters to training camps in Afghanistan.
Relations between the militants and other residents have reportedly been strained since Esbat emerged victorious from a turf battle after al-Masri's death.
Meanwhile, the local Fatah leader, Munir Maqdah, is contemptuous of the peace efforts being made by Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas.
He told the Telegraph: "As long as there is one piece of Arab land occupied and one refugee outside the country of their birth, the Palestinians have only one weapon that the Americans, Israelis and Abu Mazen cannot deprive them of - and that is the martyrdom spirit."
Although convicted by a Jordanian court of being an al-Qaida agent, Maqdah denied that he allowed its fighters to establish a base in Ain al-Hilweh.
At the same time, noted the paper, the Lebanese army fears a bloodbath if it enters the camp.
Time for Bush to squeeze Israel again. Al Qaeda and the Taliban need a homeland too.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
