BEIRUT, LEBANON - Hezbollah and its allies began withdrawing their gunmen here in the capital Saturday evening, raising hopes for a political settlement after four days of street battles that left at least 29 people dead.

The fighting has stoked fears of a broader civil conflict.

Hezbollah acted shortly after the Lebanese army -- widely seen as a neutral force -- proposed to resolve the dispute that provoked the latest round of bloody confrontations between the Hezbollah-led opposition and government supporters.

Armed Hezbollah supporters seized control of western Beirut on Friday, patrolling the empty streets and prompting angry accusations that the group, which is backed by Iran and Syria, had staged a coup.

On Saturday afternoon, after another day of sporadic violence, the army offered to broker a face-saving solution by promising to "investigate" Hezbollah's controversial private telephone network without harming the group's integrity. It also proposed to retain the current chief of airport security, a Hezbollah ally whom the government had tried to fire.

That proposal -- quickly embraced by both government leaders and the opposition -- sharply underscored the Lebanese army's role as the one national institution seen as neutral there. Many have feared that the army would fragment along sectarian or political lines, as it did during Lebanon's 15-year civil war.