Lebanon’s feuding leaders struck a deal yesterday to pave the way for the election of a new president and a national unity government designed to end 19 months of political turmoil which brought the country to the brink of civil war.

The agreement was reached only after the Western-backed Lebanese Government and its supporters made key concessions, underlining the stark fact that the militant Shia Hezbollah holds the balance of power in Lebanon, politically and militarily. It also exposes the limitations of Western support for the Government of Fouad Siniora, the Prime Minister.

“The agreement we reached is an exceptional agreement amid exceptional circumstances,” Mr Siniora said at a news conference in Doha, the capital of Qatar.

The heated talks, mediated by the Government of Qatar, began on Saturday when Lebanon’s battling politicians were corralled in a hotel to forge an agreement to end a 19-month political deadlock. The crisis culminated two weeks ago in the worst sectarian violence in the country since the end of the 1975-90 civil war.

The Doha accord calls for the immediate election as president of General Michel Suleiman, the commander of the Lebanese Army. General Suleiman has been the favoured consensus candidate since November when the previous incumbent, Emile Lahoud, finished his term. The Lebanese Parliament is expected to convene on Sunday to vote in General Suleiman.

The second clause calls for the formation of a 30-seat national unity government in which the March 14 coalition, which forms the parliamentary majority, is allocated 16 seats and the opposition 11 seats, with the remaining three being filled by ministers of the President’s choosing.

The formula grants the Opposition its demand to secure at least a third of the Cabinet, granting it a veto over any legislation to which it objects. The Government and its March 14 supporters have consistently rejected the Opposition’s demand for the blocking share. It was a key reason for the political deadlock which has bedevilled Lebanon since November 2006 when the opposition ministers quit the Government, sparking the crisis.

The two parties also agreed on an electoral law for next year’s parliamentary elections and vowed to begin a dialogue under the new President’s auspices to discuss the fate of Hezbollah’s arms.

The biggest concession, however, is the decision to grant the Opposition a veto-wielding share of the next government. That decision almost guarantees that there will be no significant movement on disarming Hezbollah, a development that the Shia party has rejected.

“We were always ready to give concessions for the sake of co-existence, and open a new page for reconciliation,” said Saad Hariri, the leader of the Future Movement, the largest Sunni political party and part of the March 14 block.

The first tangible indication of an easing of tensions was the dismantling of the “tent city” in central Beirut, the site of an 18-month sit-in by opposition supporters which paralysed commercial activity in the city’s hub.

“Today is Lebanon’s wedding day,” said Tanios Harfoush, the owner of a shoe shop. “Lebanon sometimes falls down, but it always gets back up again.” However, despite the optimism, serious obstacles still exist, including increased sectarian hostility sparked by the recent violence.

Hezbollah’s swift routing of Sunni groups during recent deadly street battles in Beirut has spawned an ominous backlash within Lebanon’s Sunni community — one of anger, humiliation and fear.

The result could mean that the influence of moderate Sunni leaders weakens as their constituents shift towards more militant groups, such as al-Qaeda and its adherents, as a perceived source of protection against the powerful Hezbollah.

Hezbollah’s heavy-handed offensive in Beirut may have been intended only as a short, sharp shock to discourage the fragile Western-backed Lebanese Government from tampering with its military wing, but it has delivered a blow to the Shia party’s long-standing efforts to prevent intraMuslim discord.

Timetable of turmoil

2005 Hezbollah helps Government coalition to win a parliamentary majority weeks after Syria withdraws its troops from Lebanon

2006 Hezbollah guerrillas capture two Israeli soldiers, embroiling Lebanon in a 34-day war with Israel. In November ministers from Hezbollah and the Amal movement resign from the Cabinet after failing to gain more influence. Hezbollah allies camp outside Fouad Siniora’s office in Beirut in an open-ended protest

2007 The Hezbollah-led opposition call a general strike to pressure the Government. A sit-in in central Beirut lasts 100 days. In September Lebanese troops take control of the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp after months of fighting with Fatah militants; 420 people die. President Lahoud steps down in November without successor. Mr Siniora says that his Cabinet will assume executive powers

2008 This month the Government declares Hezbollah’s communications network illegal. Hezbollah seizes large parts of Beirut, sparking fears of civil war. It also clashes with the Druze forces of Walid Jumblatt. An Arab League delegation brokers a deal to end fighting

Source: Times archives

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