DOHA – Rival Lebanese leaders signed a deal on Wednesday to end 18 months of political conflict that had pushed their country to the brink of a new civil war. The deal, concluded after six days of Arab-mediated talks in Qatar, paved the way for parliament to elect army chief General Michel Suleiman as president, filling a post vacant since November because of the political deadlock. Lebanese Parliament speaker Nabih Berri said Suleiman would be elected president this week most likely on Sunday May 25th. The deal between the ruling coalition and the  opposition resolved a dispute over a parliamentary election law and met the opposition’s long-standing demand  to obtain 11 Cabinet seats under the deal.  In fact lin a ate night meeting on Tuesday of a six-member committee to discuss the electoral law finally achieved a breakthrough. Following a short session, opposition MP Ali Hassan Khalil told NBN television that a settlement was in the offing.  The feuding parties have finally managed to agree on dividing Beirut into three balanced constituencies. The first constituency is a Christian one with five seats, the second is a mixed one with four seats, and the third is a Sunni-dominated one with 10 seats.  On the other hand, Reform and Change bloc leader Michel Aoun will have to fight to win the five seats in the Christian district as the Armenian vote will be a deciding factor in the mixed constituency. Up until the last minute, Aoun was reportedly fighting to put six seats in the Christian district, but ended up accepting the 10-5-4 formula. The current ruling coalition will get 16 seats. The remaining seats will be distributed by the incoming president, in the 30-member cabinet.   Under the deal, the two sides also agreed on an electoral law, which divides the Mediterranean Sea country into smaller-sized political districts. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri also will call parliament to session to elect army chief, Gen. Michel Suleiman, as the country new president in the next 24 hours, the Qatari prime minister said.

"The parties agreed that the speaker of parliament will call within 24 hours for the election of General Michel Suleiman as president of the republic," Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani said, reading from the agreement at the signing ceremony in Doha.  A few bursts of celebratory gunfire broke out in Beirut’s after the announcement. Lebanese television stations showed Lebanese politicians and their Arab hosts congratulating and hugging one another.

Speaking in Doha at the ceremony, Berri said opposition supporters would also dismantle their "tent city" protest camp.which the opposition has started immediately. The opposition has been camped out for more than a year in downtown Beirut across from the prime minister’s office. Berri said this would be a "gift" from the opposition, hailing the Doha agreement. Saniora, also addressing the ceremony, called on the Lebanese to reject violence and asked Arab states to help support Lebanon’s army, which kept a neutral role during the latest clashes. "We must … pledge never to resort to arms to resolve our political differences," Saniora said. "We should accept each other and hold dialogue to solve the problems. We want to live together and we will continue that. We have no other choice." The Doha-based negotiations came after the Arab League mediated a deal to end the week of deadly violence that paralyzed parts of the country. The Qatar negotiations hit snags from the very start, with neither side willing to give concessions.  The agreement was reached after host Qatar stepped up the pressure Tuesday with Qatari Emir Sheik Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani personally intervening.  "There are no losers," said Lebanese Telecommunications Minister Marwan Hamadeh, "Lebanon is the winner."

Daily star: Lebanese lawmakers are set to elect the commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces, General Michel Suleiman, as president on Sunday after rival political leaders clinched a deal in Doha on Wednesday to end an 18-month feud that exploded into deadly sectarian fighting and threatened to plunge the nation into all-out civil war.  The deal that was reached at Doha after four days of intensive talks will lead to electing Suleiman, forming a national unity cabinet, and drafting a new electoral law for the 2009 parliamentary elections.  The agreement was announced by Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani at noon Wednesday as the rival leaders gathered at a roundtable.  "Some of you took to the streets asking your leaders not to return to Lebanon without reaching an agreement … I would like to tell you that your leaders have finally agreed and they will shortly be on their way back," Sheikh Hamad said, addressing the Lebanese people.  The rival leaders officially signed the agreement shortly after it was announced.  They arrived in Beirut later in the day.  As the good news reached Beirut, people in the capital and in different areas of the country could not help but show their content and relief.  The feeling of relief was followed by instant action as opposition supporters began to remove tents at the site of their 18-month sit-in in Downtown Beirut after Speaker Nabih Berri declared an end to the protest.  Berri said that ending the sit-in was a gift from the opposition to the Doha agreement.    The speaker also thanked Qatari and Arab mediators for their role in helping Lebanese parties reach an agreement.  The long-awaited deal addressed two key issues of contention between the opposition and ruling majority.  As far as forming a national unity government is concerned, the opposition has managed to get its long-demanded veto power.  The new cabinet will be made up of 16 ministers for the parliamentary majority, 11 for the opposition, and three for the elected president. The 11 ministers (one third plus one of the 30-member cabinet) are all that it takes for the opposition to block any government decision to which its is opposed.  However, the next cabinet is not due to last long as it will resign by default when the parliamentary elections are due next spring.  Meanwhile, the most important deal of all was the agreement reached on drafting a new electoral law for the 2009 parliamentary elections.  The issue of the electoral law was the major hurdle to the success of the Doha talks after the rival sides, which approved adopting the qada (smaller district) as an electoral constituency, appeared at odds over how to divide seats in Beirut.  As the Doha talks were moving close to failure, a late night meeting on Tuesday of a six-member committee to discuss the electoral law finally achieved a breakthrough. Following a short session, opposition MP Ali Hassan Khalil told NBN television that a settlement was in the offing.  The feuding parties have finally managed to agree on dividing Beirut into three balanced constituencies. The first constituency is a Christian one with five seats, the second is a mixed one with four seats, and the third is a Sunni-dominated one with 10 seats.  The formula is likely to secure for parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri at least 10 out of Beirut’s 19 seats.  On the other hand, Reform and Change bloc leader Michel Aoun will have to fight to win the five seats in the Christian district as the Armenian vote will be a deciding factor in the mixed constituency. Up until the last minute, Aoun was reportedly fighting to put six seats in the Christian district, but ended up accepting the 10-5-4 formula.  As for other parts of the country, the two sides agreed on adopting the divisions of the 1960 electoral law.  Prime Minister Fouad Siniora described the agreement as a "great achievement in … the history of Lebanon."  Speaking shortly after the Qatari emir announced the agreement, Siniora called on all Lebanese parties to condemn violence and pledge not to use arms to settle political disputes.  The Doha agreement has committed all parties not to use violence and stated that security was the exclusive responsibility of the Lebanese state.   Under the agreement, a dialogue is set to begin in Beirut to address the issue of the state’s relations with political groups in the country. Such dialogue is to be held under the auspices of the new president.  The issue of Hizbullah’s possession of arms was not discussed at the Doha talks or mentioned in the agreement as the Arab committee decided to make do with banning the use of violence, a clear reference to the recent clashes in Lebanon between opposition and pro-government militants.  The clashes left up to 65 dead and 250 wounded.  Hariri also praised the deal.  "Today, we are opening a new page in Lebanon’s history," he said

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 French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Wednesday hailed an agreement in Qatar to end Lebanon’s 18-month political crisis as "a great success for Lebanon". Sarkozy called in a statement for the accord between Prime Minister Fuad Siniora’s  government and the  opposition to be "fully implemented. The French president said the agreement was "a great success for Lebanon and the Lebanese, who have never lacked courage and patience despite the trials they have been been through. He paid tribute to the "decisive role" played by Qatar and Arab League Secretary Genereal Amr Mussa — but also drew attention to France’s role as mediator.
    "France, which has invested much effort in the search for a solution to the Lebanese crisis, never stopped backing the process that led to this agreement," Sarkozy said. "As a friend of Lebanon, in solidarity with all Lebanese, France stands more than ever by their side for the period that lies ahead. More than ever, it is committed to the unity, stability, sovereignty and independence of Lebanon."

Syria was among the first countries to welcome an agreement among Lebanese leaders on Wednesday to end 18 months of political conflict, saying that it hoped Parliament would elect a president on Sunday. The Qatari News Agency announced that Syrian President Bashar Assad called Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani to congratulate him on the agreement that was reached by the Lebanese leaders in Doha.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem had already expressed from Yemen his support for the agreement.

Under Arab League auspices, rival Lebanese leaders clinched a deal on Wednesday to end the political feud that exploded into deadly fighting on May 5 and nearly drove the country into a new civil war.

The agreement, announced in Doha, will see the election of a president for Lebanon within days and the creation of a unity government in which the Hizbullah-led opposition will have the power of veto.

Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Lebanon, whose country backs the Beirut government, said on Wednesday that Riyadh supports the agreement reached between rival leaders in Qatar.

"Saudi Arabia announces its support for the agreement between the Lebanese in Doha. We are very happy that this accord has been reached," Abdel-Aziz Khoja, who is currently in Riyadh, told AFP.

Regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia backs the Cabinet of Premier Fouad Siniora, who also has the support of the United States and other Western powers.

Iran, the main foreign supporter with Syria of the Lebanese opposition, also welcomed the deal on Wednesday.

"Iran welcomes and is pleased about the agreement reached by the Lebanese factions," the ISNA news agency quoted Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini as saying.

"Iran congratulates all the Lebanese groups, regional countries and the Arab League, and especially the Qatari government," he added.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran hopes that the Doha accord … will provide a blossoming and brilliant future for the Lebanese and be the prelude to freeing the rest of Lebanese territory" from Israeli occupation, he added.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmad Abu al-Gheit, whose country backs the government, called for the deal to be faithfully implemented by all parties.

"The agreement ends a complicated crisis which could have destroyed Lebanon’s stability had it not been for the wisdom of certain Lebanese politicians and the rapid Arab intervention," the official MENA news agency quoted him as saying.

"Egypt is particularly relieved … about the agreement of all Lebanese groups to no longer resort to weapons to resolve conflicts or achieve political gains," Abu al-Gheit said.

Meanwhile, the United States welcomed the deal, but warned that the crisis in Beirut was not yet over.

"The United States welcomes the agreement reached by Lebanese leaders in Doha, Qatar," said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in a statement, as she renewed support for the central government to extend its authority nationwide.

"We view this agreement as a positive step towards resolving the current crisis by electing a president, forming a new government, and addressing Lebanon’s electoral law, consistent with the Arab League initiative," the statement said.

In Washington, US Deputy Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs David Welch said the deal represented a "necessary and positive step" toward restoring functional government in Lebanon. But he admitted the Lebanese still have "very delicate political" issues to resolve.

"This is not the end of this crisis. Lebanon still has to go through implementing this agreement," Welch said.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon hailed the landmark deal between Lebanon’s feuding factions to end the political standoff and looks forward to the early election of a new president, his office said Wednesday.

"The secretary general welcomes the important agreement reached in Doha today among Lebanon’s political leaders," the office said in a statement.

"He hopes this agreement will be the prelude to a lasting period of national reconciliation, political stability, peace and progress for all of Lebanon’s people and for the future of their country," it added.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy hailed the deal brokered in Qatar as a "great success" and joined Germany and Spain in calling for its swift implementation. "France, which has invested much effort in the search for a solution to the Lebanese crisis, never stopped backing the process that led to this agreement," Sarkozy said.

"As a friend of Lebanon, in solidarity with all Lebanese, France stands more than ever by their side for the period that lies ahead. More than ever, it is committed to the unity, stability, sovereignty and independence of Lebanon."

Germany and Spain called for Suleiman’s election as president to take place as soon as possible, followed swiftly by the formation of the unity government.

"Spain, which along with France and Italy, contributed to the mediation efforts, trusts that the Lebanese people will be able to take advantage of the opportunities opened up by this important agreement and by the peace prospects that are opening up in the Middle East," the Spanish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini welcomed the news and expressed his hope that the inter-Lebanese accord would be solidified through the immediate election of a president and the formation of a new cabinet.

"We now expect the universal, unreserved commitment of all parties to the implementation of the agreement through the immediate election of [Commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces] Michel Suleiman, and the formation of a new government that will have the specific duty of ensuring order, security and national reconstruction," he said. – AFP, with The Daily Star