Qatar talks between feuding Lebanese bogged down on Hizbullah arms issue

Feuding Lebanese factions meeting in Qatar for highest-level talks in their country's 18-month political crisis traded accusations and reported almost no progress on the second day of discussions between the US-backed government and Hizbullah-led opposition. Hizbullah's chief negotiator at the talks, Mohammed Ra'ad, said that "no one may open a debate" about the Iranian-backed group's weapons and has accused the government of trying to "blackmail" the opposition by bringing the subject up in Doha. A member of the government team, meanwhile, said that no progress has been made in Doha and that the Arab League-mediated talks are "still at the beginning." He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to media.