'For All This, People Have Died?'

Anger remained in streets that last week were the scene of armed clashes pitting Hezbollah fighters and their allies against armed men loyal to the government.

At a pharmacy, Jamil Mizhir, a customer, called the deal a defeat for the United States, Israel and "their agents" in Lebanon. Fatima Dakkash, the pharmacist, scolded him.

"Now we have to speak in a civil tone, with manners and politeness," she said.

Down the street from Solh's statue, Manal Smaha, a 25-year-old government supporter entering downtown for the first time in months, was in an unforgiving mood.

"We put our youth in universities and teach them. They give their youth weapons and train them," she said, with a look of contempt. "We fight with pens, not weapons."

But heard often was disgust at a crisis that many believe could have been resolved earlier. Some directed their anger at the country's leaders, others at themselves. Many wondered whether the country would finally turn its attention to an economic crisis and the rising prices of food, gasoline and even taxi rides.

"All of these leaders have palaces, millions of dollars, and they educate their children abroad, while we live in poverty and misery," said Philip al-Hazraq, a 43-year-old bank employee downtown. "How do you understand this? Are they better than me?"

The negotiations took a telling turn in Doha, the Qatari capital. In the end, much of the debate focused on a law to organize next year's parliamentary elections. Each side won some of its demands -- a division of Beirut that will help government allies, smaller electoral districts that may help the opposition. But, significantly, a proposal made by an independent commission appointed by the government to introduce proportional representation was ignored. Those eager to reform politics monopolized by sectarian leaders saw the proposal as the best hope to bring independent, secular voices into a political system many deem sclerotic.

"We'll always have the same leaders. Whatever the difference, whatever the disputes, they'll come back as they were," said Maurice Elias, a friend of Hazraq's.

Hazraq, a father of six, shook his head in disgust.

"What's worse? A donkey or the people here? A donkey walks into a hole once and it learns its lesson. It doesn't do it again. Then there's the Lebanese people. They keep searching for a hole to fall into. It's worse. We keep falling into the same hole.

"Shame on Lebanon for what happened," he said.