BEIRUT — The presence of Palestinians has always been a weighty factor in the Lebanese situation. It moves to the forefront with every security disturbance, particularly those in Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp. Ain al-Hilweh has become synonymous with being a place for fugitives and terrorists. Following the events in Abra in June 2013, it was believed that wanted terrorists Ahmad al-Assir and Fadel Shaker sought shelter here. Following the recent battles in Tripoli, the same accusation has surfaced in regard to fugitive Shadi Mawlawi.

Lebanese Minister of Interior and Municipalities Nouhad al-Machnouk said in a TV interview, “It is no longer acceptable that the camp remains a hotbed where fugitives flee from justice.”

Informed security sources told Al-Monitor that the investigations into the cases of wanted and arrested terror suspects showed that a number of those classified as "very dangerous" had spent some time in Ain al-Hilweh, while others are affiliated with al-Qaeda, the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, Jabhat al-Nusra or the Islamic State (IS). Two men who infiltrated Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp, for instance, were Palestinian detainee Naim Abbas, who was arrested in February on charges of rigging cars with explosives and recruiting suicide bombers and who was No. 4 on the Lebanese security services' list of most wanted fugitives, and detainee Ahmad Mikati, who was planning to carry out a major terrorist attack when he was arrested in October after he pledged allegiance to IS and formed IS-linked terror cells in the north of Lebanon.

The sources said that Ain al-Hilweh has been associated with a number of security incidents in Sidon and other areas. The first time was in 1999 when the perpetrators of the assassination of four judges in the Palace of Justice in Sidon fled to the camp. At the time, the Palestinian forces failed to hand them over despite the security services identifying them.