Deported Syrian returns to Lebanon

A Lebanese security source has told Arabstoday that Tareq Hamawi, one of 14 Syrians deported last week from Lebanon for involvement in suspected militant activities, returned to Lebanon Saturday. The source said that decisions to deport a person from a country does not preven them from re-entering the country they seported as long as the judicial verdict does not explicilty deny them that. The returning exile has a family in Lebanon, including a mother and a sister to whom he returned on Saturday. The news of return came shortly after the declaration that Syrian authorities had released the 14 persons banished for the lack of proof that they had any problems on the Syrian territories, and with no background of being supporters of the revolution tha thas gripped the country. Over 17,000 people are believed to have died in the conflict since Syrian President Bashar al-Assad began cracking down on a pro-democracy uprising that erupted 17 months ago. Meanwhile, gunshots were heard in the Ein Al-Hilweh refugee camp in eastern Sidon, supposedly in celebration of the return of Sheikh Usama Al-Shahabi and Mohamed Al-Arifi from Syria after months of absence. They were said to be detained by the Syrian authorities whereas other sources mentioned that they returned to the Yarmouk Palestinian camp in eastern Damascus following its shelling by the Syrian army. Around 21 people are beleived to have died in the shelling. Sheikh Shahabi is known to have a group of supporters in the camp who had been disappointed when they were told that Al-Shahabi was forced to leave the camp.