Families return to Lebanon camp

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The first families have returned to the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp in Lebanon, the scene of months of fighting between soldiers and Islamic militants.

Clutching plastic bags of possessions, the families waited patiently at the camp entrance to be searched before being allowed back to their homes.

They are the first of about 400 families granted permission by the Lebanese Army to return to the camp.

The army's siege of Fatah al-Islam members displaced some 40,000 people.

About 400 people, mainly militants and soldiers, died in the violence, which started in mid-May and finally came to an end on 2 September.

The UN Relief and Works Agency, which is overseeing the staged return of families to the camp, provided transport from the nearby Beddawi camp where the refugees have been staying.

"I'm so happy about going back, even if it's to just one inch of what's left of my home. It's as symbolic as returning to Palestine," Um Akram Awdeh, 60, told the Reuters news agency, as he waited in a bus to enter the camp.

But others said they were scared at what they would find once inside, and saddened by the destruction. Journalists were prevented from accompanying the families inside.

The families were provided with water, food parcels, and other necessities by the Unrwa, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, which said it would also set up a mobile medical clinic.

The Lebanese government has estimated the cost of relief for the refugees of Nahr al-Bared, reconstruction and help for local municipalities at $382.5m. So far $37m of assistance has been pledged by regional and international donors, the Reuters agency reported.