West Beirut Simmers Down to Mere Fistfights : Syrian Troops Bring Cautious Normalcy to Area Long Plagued by Gun Battles

BEIRUT —  Two taxi drivers slugged it out with their fists Friday in Muslim West Beirut, where only two weeks ago they might have drawn pistols and shot it out in the lawless streets.

Traffic disputes once customarily provoked gun battles in West Beirut, which had boiled over into anarchy since leftist and Muslim militias wrested control of the area from the regular Lebanese army on Feb. 6, 1984.

But since more than 7,000 Syrian soldiers entered the city Feb. 22 to quell fighting between rival militias, a cautious normalcy has returned to the city--at least for the time being.

“Stop it!” was all a police corporal had to shout Friday to end the argument between the two taxi drivers in the Mar Elias commercial thoroughfare, blowing his whistle like any other policeman who wanted to get the traffic moving again.

The leftist daily newspaper As Safir reported a similar quarrel between two bakery workers on Hamra Street.

‘No Weapons, No Ambulances’

“No weapons were used in the clash, no ambulances were rushed to the scene and no gunmen took to the streets,” the paper said.

A police spokesman said officers have confiscated at least 42 stolen cars from thieves since Feb. 22 and returned them to their owners.

“The thieves were apprehended,” he said. Before the calm, he probably would have said, “An arrest warrant was issued for the unknown criminal.”

“The department is receiving complaints about minor crimes, which is a very encouraging sign,” said the spokesman, who refused to be named in keeping with police regulations. “This means that civilians are not scared of gunmen anymore.”

Apartments Relinquished

He said 50 apartments and about 15 shops that had been occupied by gunmen for three years were turned over to their legal owners this week.

Mohammed Hasbini, a bank employee, reported to police this week that the side mirror was stolen from of his Mercedes-Benz.

“I even named the suspect,” Hasbini boasted.

Helmeted Syrian soldiers, backed by 100 tanks and multi-barreled rocket launchers, entered West Beirut two weeks ago to stop seven days of factional clashes that claimed 300 lives, wounded 1,300 people and wreaked $200-million worth of damage.

75 Militia Offices Closed

The Syrians have closed down all 75 militia offices in West Beirut and killed 38 defiant gunmen, including 23 Shias of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah, or Party of God, in their effort to enforce law and order.

Syrian army patrols have also broken open 36 secret arms depots and erected checkpoints at all entrances to the city to prevent the return of militiamen to the Muslim sector.

Street gangs apparently were shaken by the firmness of the Syrian forces. Golden cups, carpets, and other valuable items stolen from the Armenian Church in West Beirut’s Zokak Blatt district were brought back overnight to the church’s main gate after the chief of Syria’s military intelligence in Lebanon, Brig. Gen. Ghazi Kenaan, said his forces would have “no mercy” in dealing with looters and troublemakers.

Beards Banned

The Syrians not only declared West Beirut off limits for militias, they also banned military appearances--including beards, a ruling that dismayed Hezbollah clergymen.

“Do not shave or trim your beards. They are part of our Islamic tradition,” a black-turbaned Hezbollah cleric told sympathizers mourning the 23 party members killed in a fight with the Syrians on Feb. 25.

The Syrians have stopped scores of bearded young men at checkpoints, confiscated their identity cards and returned them only after they showed up clean-shaven.

“You look more civilized without a beard,” a news reporter said a Syrian officer told him when he returned to the checkpoint to collect his press card.

“Thank God, the Syrians are in and the bearded ones are out,” a liquor store owner said as he carried bottles of alcohol into his shop on the edge of a densely populated, predominantly Shia district.

Shia zealots calling for the creation of an Islamic republic in Lebanon had attacked his shop at least 10 times in the last three years; Islam prohibits the consumption of alcohol.

“It is business time again,” said the businessman, himself a Shia, who asked to be identified only as Saleh.