Lebanon's rival political leaders are holding talks in Qatar aimed at ending the sectarian conflict which left at least 65 people dead in recent days.

They are set to discuss power-sharing in a proposed national unity government and reform of election laws.

The discussions in Doha follow an agreement on Wednesday, mediated by the Arab League, to end the fighting.

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In return, the opposition agreed to end its sit-in protests in Beirut, remove street blockades and allow the capital's international airport to re-open fully.

Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, had described the decision to dismantle its private telecommunications network and sack the airport's security chief with alleged links to the group as a "declaration of war" by the government.

Thorny problems

The Doha talks are aimed at ending the political dispute which has seen the worst sectarian violence since the civil war

The first session of talks ended shortly before lunchtime and is due to reconvene again this afternoon.

Delegates said they had agreed to form a four-member committee to decide on a framework for reform of the parliamentary election law and, once that is achieved to move onto the exact composition and balance of power within a proposed national unity government.

"The impression, thank God, from the session, shows the desire among all the factions to reach an understanding... that will bring us to the beginning of a solution to this crisis," Prime Minister Fouad Siniora told the Voice of Lebanon.

"We have to have faith and trust that we will do the impossible until we find solutions to this difficult stage that Lebanon has faced the past two weeks."

The BBC's Jim Muir in Beirut says both issues are extremely thorny problems, which have defied many previous attempts at mediation.

But this time the leaders are expected to stay in Qatar for as long as it takes to reach agreement, our correspondent says.

Assuming they do, they will return to Beirut and elect the consensus candidate for president, army commander Gen Michel Suleiman.

Lebanon has also not had a president since November, when Emile Lahoud stepped down despite parliament failing to elect a successor.

Hezbollah would also then dismantle the tented encampment with which it has been besieging the government building in central Beirut for the past 18 months, and political life would return to some semblance of normality, our correspondent adds.

(BBC)

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