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NGOs accuse Leb army of excessive force
Relief workers yesterday accused the Lebanese army of using "excessive force" to disperse a protest in which dozens of displaced refugees in northern Lebanon were killed or wounded."The protesters were more than 10 metres (yards) away from the (army) checkpoint and there was gunfire," said Caoimhe Butterfly, an Irish member of the Nahr Al Bared Relief Campaign, a non-governmental organisation. Mahmud Halimi, the NGO's coordinator, called for an independent probe into Friday's violence as Palestinian refugees demanded the right to return to the Nahr Al Bared camp where troops have been battling Islamists since May 20. "The demonstration was going peacefully and unarmed. The soldiers fired first in the air. We sat down to de-escalate, but after that there was gunfire at the demonstrators. There was no communication before opening fire," he said. "Men, women and children were victims of an excessive use of force. We ask for an independent investigation," Butterfly told reporters in Beddawi, a Palestinian camp near Nahr Al Bared and close to the scene of the violence. Medics said three people were killed and about 40 wounded as the demonstration by hundreds of refugees who fled Nahr Al Bared came under fire from Lebanese soldiers at a checkpoint outside Beddawi. A wounded Palestinian, Salim Shamaa, said, "I got shot because I was raising my hand to talk to the people," while 22-year-old Mohammed said he was knifed by Lebanon counter-demonstrators. "People are very angry. They thought they had left Nahr Al Bared to be safe ... The last thing they thought was they could be killed or wounded by coming here," said Mona Waked of the UN relief agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA. But the Lebanese army insisted its troops had taken all necessary measures to avoid casualties among the protesters. "They were trying to force their way through the checkpoint, carrying metal objects and sticks, ignoring warning shots in the air," an army spokesman said. Posted by: Pappy 2007-07-02 |
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