Nasser Ismail, the military commander of Fatah al-Islam, has been captured by Palestinian security forces at the Beddawi refugee camp in northern Lebanon.

 

Ismail appeared to be suffering from exhaustion after weeks of hiding in forests.

The camp is where many former residents from the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp had taken emergency shelter during fighting between Fatah al-Islam and the Lebanese army, which had lasted for 15 weeks. Ismail's wife remains in Beddawi.

Abu Ali Fares, a spokesman for a Palestinian faction in the Beddawi camp, said: "Nasser Ismail was captured by a [Palestinian] security force ... the force raided the house of a relative of Nasser Ismail and found him hiding in the attic with another person."

"He was taken aboard a Red Crescent ambulance during the night of Sunday to Monday. He was handed over to the [Lebanese] army intelligence services."

 

Death toll rises

Khalil Dib, an official of Fatah al-Intifada, a Palestinian faction, has said that Ismail, while in the custody of the Palestinian forces, had told him that he had been in Nahr al-Bared until Saturday before heading to Beddawi.

Since government forces defeated Fatah al-Islam fighters on September 2, the Lebanese army has been searching the area for militants, including Shaker al-Absi, the leader of Fatah al-Islam. 

Dib also said that according to Ismail, "Shaker al-Absi left Nahr al-Bared one month before the end of the battle".

Abu Salim Taha, Fatah al-Islam's spokesman, was captured near Beddawi camp last month.

 

Abu Hureira, the deputy commander, was killed in a shootout with security forces in August after he fled the camp.
 
More than 400 people have died in the fighting between the Lebanese army and Fatah al-Islam, including at least 222 fighters.

A Lebanese soldier died last Friday, raising the army death toll to 168.