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Lebanon Army Arrests Top Palestinian Terror Suspect | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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An ambulance leaves the Ain el-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near the port city of Sidon, southern Lebanon August 23, 2015. REUTERS/Ali Hashisho


A Palestinian militant wanted for planning bomb attacks in Lebanon was detained by the army on Saturday at a Palestinian refugee camp in southern Lebanon, the state-run National News Agency reported.

Palestinian factions in Ain el-Hilweh refugee camp handed over Khaled Masaad, known as al-Sayyid, to the Lebanese army at dawn at a checkpoint outside the camp, on the outskirts of the city of Sidon, NNA said.

Masaad is accused of leading a terror cell that allegedly plotted attacks during the holy month of Ramadan in the capital Beirut and Sidon, a security source said.

The cell was uncovered by Lebanon’s General Security, the source said.

Sayyid had previously traveled to Syria to fight with militants in the civil war there, the source added.

Lebanese security forces do not enter Palestinian refugee camps, where security is managed by joint committees of Palestinian factions.

Ain el-Hilweh, which is home to some 100,000 Palestinians, occasionally witnesses clashes between Palestinian factions and extremists taking refuge in the camp.

Lebanese security agencies have been cracking down on sleeper extremist cells to deter any security breach.