Lebanese Christian Militia Is Set to Pull Out of Beirut

LEBANON'S strongest militia, the Christian Lebanese Forces, agreed Oct. 30 to pull out of Beirut. The Christian militia is the seventh armed group to endorse President Elias Hrawi's plan to unite divided Beirut under one army and disband all militias.

Earlier Oct. 30 three Syrian-backed militias also agreed to pull out of Beirut. The Druze Progressive Socialist Party and both factions of the Syrian Nationalist Social Party said that their militias would withdraw from the capital.

In another step toward peace, rival Shiite militias declared a cease-fire, which was sponsored by Iran and Syria.

Security sources said that Syrian-backed Amal militia and Pro-Iranian Hizbullah reached a cease-fire agreement on Oct. 30 after talks at the Syrian headquarters in Beirut. Amal and Hizbullah, vying for leadership of Lebanon's 1.3 million Shiites, have fought for three years. The truce paves the way for a political settlement, the sources said. the sources said.