Palestinians refugees residing in Lebanon are viewing the state of affairs in Gaza with concern, but say the situation will not drive them to take up arms against Israel or the Lebanese army.
Palestinian refugees in Lebanon can do precious little to help Gazans, ‘Ali Hweidi, secretary general of the Thabit Organization for the Right of Return, told The Media Line.
Thabit is a non-governmental organization acting on behalf of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon.
“[Palestinians in Lebanon] can only carry weapons inside camps and they are prevented from doing anything against Israel or helping the Palestinians in Gaza,” Hweidi said.
Their main activity, while the operation in Gaza continues, is to stage demonstrations and to appeal to the international community and to Arab and Muslim governments to help the Palestinians in Gaza and restore their rights.
“The target is not Hamas soldiers but the Palestinians themselves. Israel is not respecting the law,” he said.
Hweidi blatantly dismissed the notion that Palestinians in Lebanon would turn their weapons against the Lebanese army in frustration over what is happening in Gaza.
“The Palestinian demonstrations are peaceful,” he said.
Refugees have been demonstrating outside the Egyptian embassy in Beirut to protest Cairo’s handling of the situation. Protests have resulted in minor clashes with Lebanese security forces, but nothing more than that, Hweidi said.
“Using weapons against the Lebanese is rejected and unacceptable and will never happen,” he added.
Lebanon hosts nearly 400,000 Palestinian refugees who complain of discrimination from the government.
Palestinians are not granted equal rights and are limited in job opportunities. Analysts say they are deliberately being discriminated against so they will not seek permanent residency in Lebanon, and so the refugees can be used as leverage in negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians.
Beirut recently announced plans to upgrade its relations with the Palestine Liberation Organization.
The PLO is regarded by the Arab League as the sole representative of the Palestinian people and is currently headed by Fatah’s Mahmoud ‘Abbas, who is also chairman of the Palestinian Authority.