![Refugees take refuge in schools and cultural centers after clashes in Ain al-Helwa camp in Sidon, Lebanon on July 30, 2023 [Houssam Shbaro/Anadolu Agency]](https://i0.wp.com/www.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/AA-20230730-31804140-31804139-CLASHES_BETWEEN_TWO_GROUPS_IN_THE_PALESTINIAN_REFUGEE_CAMP_OF_AIN_ALHELWA.jpg?resize=1200%2C800&quality=85&strip=all&zoom=1&ssl=1)
A Lebanese relief NGO said on Tuesday that it had suspended its services in the Ain Al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near the city of Sidon. Al Shifaa for Medical and Humanitarian Services explained that it took this decision after its staff, vehicles and ambulances were targeted specifically by one of the conflicting parties in the camp.
The NGO said that its staff will continue to work outside the refugee camp. It reiterated that all of its work is humanitarian and that "it does not discriminate" between beneficiaries. "We stand at the same distance from all parties in the camp."
Al-Shifaa called for the fighting to stop for the sake of everyone's "interests". Its staff, the NGO insisted, will not resume work in the refugee camp until it has the required assurances from the aggressive party, which it did not name.
At least two people have been killed in what appears to be factional fighting in Ain Al-Hilweh. One of those killed was a senior Fatah official. Three others, two of them young girls, have been wounded.
READ: Despite truce, violent clashes resume in Palestine refugee camp in Lebanon
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