Syrian troops to leave central Lebanon

Syria withdrew its forces from Beirut last summer

Syrian troops in Lebanon will redeploy to the Bekaa Valley in the east of the country within one week, the Lebanese army has announced.

The redeployment was one of the provisions in the 1989 Taif agreement which put an end to the Lebanese civil war.

The Syrian army first entered Lebanon in 1976 at the beginning of the civil war and stayed on after it ended in 1990, and Syria effectively became Lebanon's political master.

Around 25,000 Syrian troops are deployed across the country today and over the past two years there have been growing demands for their withdrawal, mostly from Lebanon's Christians.

Times have changed

Beirut had long been regarded as the freest and liveliest capital in the Arab world - even during the war.

But Syria clamped down on freedom of speech, while Lebanese politicians were seen as following Syria's lead.

[Israel's withdrawal] undermined Syria's key argument that its troops were there to protect Lebanon from Israel

The BBC's Arab affairs editor Sebastian Usher says two things have changed since those days.

First, the veteran Syrian leader, Hafez al-Assad died, to be succeeded by his son, Bashar, who remains something of an unknown quantity, though he has talked a lot about reform.

And secondly, Israel withdrew its troops almost two years ago from the zone in south Lebanon it had occupied for many years.

This undermined Syria's key argument that its troops were there to protect Lebanon from Israel.

Christian demonstrations

Christian-led protests mushroomed in Lebanon, calling for Syria to pull out as well.

Confronted with these demonstrations, Syria did pull its troops back from Beirut and some other areas.

At the same time the Lebanese authorities - under Syrian influence - arrested some of the protesters.

The struggle over Syrian influence in Lebanon has continued since then, but the BBC's Arab affairs editor says there is little sign - despite Wednesday's announcement - that Damascus is ready to relinquish its dominant role in its smaller neighbour any time soon.

Recognition

The Lebanese have been taken by surprise with the announcement of the redeployment - a move that is almost a decade overdue.

It comes exactly one month after the visit to Lebanon of Bashar al-Assad - the first official state visit of a Syrian president to Beirut since 1947.

The visit was welcomed as long-awaited recognition by Syria of Lebanon's sovereignty.

The redeployment comes one month after Assad's visit to Beirut

Although hundreds of Syrian intelligence officers are likely to stay behind and Lebanese foreign policy will continue to be dictated by Damascus, the expected troop movement is a step in the right direction to improve the relations between the two neighbouring countries.

The move also comes at a time when other Arab countries are trying to bury their differences.

Middle East analysts say it is all part of an attempt to show a more united Arab front as the region goes through a critical phase that could reshape the Middle East for years to come.