According to official television, a massive explosion rocked a Palestinian camp in the southern Lebanese coastal city of Tyre, injuring a number of people.
According to a Palestinian source inside the camp, at least 12 people were injured and an unknown number of people died as a result of the blast late on Friday.
There were no fatalities, according to local media and civil defence employees on the spot. According to a security source, no fatalities have been reported.
According to the state-run National News Agency (NNA), the explosion occurred inside a suspected Hamas weapons stockpile in the Burj al-Shemali camp, and a judge has ordered security authorities to investigate.
Local media have uploaded videos from the site, which show a series of small bright red flashes above the southern city, followed by a massive explosion and the sound of glass shattering.
According to a Palestinian source, the explosion was triggered by the ignition of oxygen canisters stored for use in combatting the COVID-19 outbreak.
In Lebanon, Hamas has a presence in a number of Palestinian camps.
The army reportedly blocked off the area, prohibiting people from entering or leaving the camp, according to the NNA.
Local media have uploaded videos from the site, which show a series of small bright red flashes above the southern city, followed by a massive explosion and the sound of glass shattering.
Tens of thousands of Palestinian refugees and their descendants live in Lebanon. Many people live in the 12 refugee camps that dot the small Mediterranean nation.
The camps are effectively controlled by a number of armed Palestinian organisations, notably those associated to Hamas and Fatah, and Lebanese officials do not access them by custom.
