Doha coup

By Abdallah El-Ashaal

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Thanks to the agreement reached in Doha on 21 May 2008, the spectre of civil war in Lebanon has lifted for the time being. Qatar, who brokered the agreement, has been doing much around the region of late. It all goes to say that although a small country, and host to the largest US base in the region, Qatar has the heart to stand up and be counted. For once Washington doesn't seem to mind.

During the summer 2006 war in Lebanon, Qatar stood by the Lebanese resistance and did much to reconstruct southern Lebanese villages. That's one reason why it was chosen to head the Arab League committee mediating in the Lebanese crisis, a role that Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Syria couldn't assume because of their previous involvement. Qatar is not a major Arab country and is not trying to take anyone's place. Let's not forget that, and let's refrain from begrudging it a role it amply deserved.

The negotiations in Qatar were not easy. The 14 March alliance had the backing of the US, Egypt and Saudi Arabia, while Hizbullah and its allies had the backing of Syria, Iran and many Arab countries. The stakes were unusually high. For its part, Hizbullah doesn't want to give up its weapons, especially that now it is convinced that the 14 March alliance, which has all the Arab and international backing it needs, wants to take it down. Meanwhile, that alliance, utterly humiliated during recent confrontations, is more insistent than ever on disarming Hizbullah.

Think catch-22. On the one hand, Hizbullah cannot be rewarded for using its military power to bully its political adversaries. On the other hand, Hizbullah is less prepared than ever to lay down its weapons. And with the conflict taking on international and regional dimensions, national reconciliation in Lebanon has seemed like a distant dream. Doha was a breakthrough. Now the Lebanese will have to pick up the mantle. No one wants civil war in Lebanon, least of all the Lebanese. They should stop listening to those who want to settle foreign differences on their turf.

This week's Soapbox speaker is former assistant to the Egyptian foreign minister.