Palestinians defeat al-Nusra militants in Syria’s Yarmouk

Palestinian fighters in the Syrian capital have been able to retake some parts of Yarmouk refugee camp from al-Nusra Front militants, days after the al-Qaeda-linked militants attacked and occupied parts of the vast camp, Al-Alam reports.
Fighting between Palestinian fighters from People’s Front for Liberation of Palestine and radical militants from al-Nusra Front erupted earlier this week, after the latter broke a two-month-old truce, attacked the camp and occupied some parts it had brought under control before the ceasefire agreement was announced.
Hesam Zidan, Al-Alam reporter in Damascus, said Palestinian fighters were able to retake some of the occupied parts while they were preparing for a major operation against the radical group to be started in the coming days.
Joma Abdullah, one of the leaders of the PFLP told Zidan that al-Nusra violation of the truce returned the situation to where it started and the fighting was resumed.
In January, Palestinian factions negotiated a deal under which the UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA was able to begin distributing some food aid to remaining residents, and around 1,500 civilians were evacuated.
Another Palestinian commander, Khaled Jebril, said it was highly unlikely if another agreement could be negotiated to stop the fighting since they have to trust in the other side keeping up with its pledges.
Yarmouk camp, located in Damascus, was once home to some 150,000 Palestinians, as well as Syrian residents.
Now an estimated 18,000 Palestinians remain in the camp, much of which has been destroyed in the foreign-charged insurgency in Syria which has been going on for nearly three years.