Chief of Palestinian President Yasser Arafat's mainstream Fatah militia in Lebanon, Munir al-Maqdah submitted his resignation Friday saying he had reached a deadlock in his attempt to peacefully resolve the security situation in the Palestinian refugee camp of Ein el-Hilweh, Assafir and Al Mustaqbal reported Saturday.

Security inside the camp has not been stable following clashes pitting mainly Fatah guerrillas against Muslim extremists belonging to a new group called Jund Asham during which four people were wounded. According to Assafir, the reason behind al-Maqdah's resignation is that he was frustrated with the instability inside the camp and that he had no intention to support his faction in its decision to attack Jund Asham. The paper said al-Maqdah possessed information that Fatah had officially decided to attack the radical fundamentalist group.

"Attempts to reconcile Fatah with Jund Asham have failed. This will inevitably lead to instability inside the camp. Our people are living in constant fear and anxiety as a result of both parties' policies. I call on everyone to exercise self-restraint in order to control the security situation and avoid a flare up, which is looming," said al-Maqdah at a press conference to announce his resignation. The paper said al-Maqdah submitted his resignation to Sultan Abul Einein, the representative of Fatah militias in Lebanon. He was expected to deliver one to Arafat as well.

When Jund Asham emerged last month inside the shantytown, it distributed pamphlets criticizing the performance of some Palestinian and Islamist groups and promoted hardline ideas. This move has sparked tension among other factions, mainly Fatah, which feared a possible flare up between militants that could undermine the relative calm in Ein el-Hilweh. Since then, Fatah has tightened its grip inside the restive camp.

Meanwhile, Al Mustaqbal reported that Khaled Aref, the most senior Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) official in south Lebanon has accused "suspected groups" of attempting to destabilize security in Ein el-Hilweh. He said these groups are connected to the Fatah-Revolutionary Council. Aref said security has been controlled inside the camp and stressed the need to deter the militants who are working against the Palestinian people's interest.

The paper said that a meeting of PLO factions and Fatah was held last week during which the conferees decided to crackdown on what they described as "fanatic", mainly from Muslim extremist groups.