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Lebanese Army Brokers End To Hezbollah Fighting

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The New York Times

Published: May 11, 2008

BEIRUT, Lebanon - Hezbollah and its allies began withdrawing their gunmen in this capital Saturday evening, raising hopes for a political settlement after four days of street battles that left at least 29 people dead.

The fighting has stoked fears of a broader civil conflict.
Hezbollah acted shortly after the Lebanese army - widely seen as a neutral force - proposed to resolve the dispute that provoked the latest round of bloody confrontations between the Hezbollah-led opposition and government supporters.

Armed Hezbollah supporters seized control of western Beirut on Friday, patrolling the empty streets and prompting angry accusations that the group, which is backed by Iran and Syria, had staged a coup.

On Saturday afternoon, after another day of sporadic violence, the army offered to broker a face-saving solution by promising to "investigate" Hezbollah's controversial private telephone network without harming the group's integrity. It also proposed to retain the current chief of airport security, a Hezbollah ally whom the government had tried to fire.

That proposal - quickly embraced by both government leaders and the opposition - sharply underscored the Lebanese army's perception as the sole neutral national institution. Many have feared that the army would fragment along sectarian or political lines, as it did during Lebanon's 15-year civil war.

Instead, it has come through the latest conflict unscathed. That neutrality, however, has come at a price: In this crisis, as in others, the army stood passively by, unwilling to be seen as taking sides, even when street battles were taking place.

The army's proposal is likely to enhance the political prospects of its leader, Gen. Michel Suleiman, who appears to be the only man both political camps are willing to accept as Lebanon's next president. The presidency has been vacant since November.

"All this has proved that the army is the only guarantor of security in Lebanon," despite its relative weakness, said Osama Safa, the general director of the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies.

It remained unclear Saturday how the recent confrontations might alter the balance of power. Hezbollah clearly hoped its show of force would translate into enhanced power in the political stalemate that has crippled Lebanon for 17 months now.

But Lebanon is notoriously resistant to political settlements, and some political analysts here say they think the government may have won a moral victory by abstaining from large-scale violence in response to Hezbollah's aggression. Some government leaders were already accusing the Shiite group of betraying its promise to use its weapons only against Israel.

Meanwhile, with violence continuing, the governments of Turkey and Kuwait began evacuating their citizens through Lebanon's northern border with Syria, the only open route out of the country. The road to Lebanon's airport has been blocked since Wednesday by Hezbollah supporters. Other land routes are cut off, and the Beirut port is also shut.

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