LEBANON: Calm prevails in Beirut's southern suburb following nine days of intensive bombardments

The streets of Beirut were relatively calm on Saturday (July 22), following nine days of intesive bombardment. In the south thousands of Lebanese civilians have fled north fearing Israel will invade and expand its 11-day-old bombardment of Lebanon which has killed 345 people, mostly civilians. Amid mounting world alarm at the war, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Friday announced a diplomatic drive but said the conflict's root causes had to be tackled before a truce. Israel has been building up its forces at the border and has called up several thousand reserves for duty. Defence Minister Amir Peretz has talked of a possible land offensive. Israel wants to stop Hizbollah firing rockets which have killed 15 Israeli civilians since the start of the war. Nineteen soldiers have also been killed. "We come and go we hide in shelters, it's torture during the nights but God is protecting us and protecting his people and this country and the children, what is the children's fault", said one citizen from Beirut. The Israeli army said it shelled areas near the border overnight, targeting Hizbollah rocket launching sites. Buildings, vehicles and communications facilities used by the group were also hit, the army said. Witnesses said Israeli war planes also launched one of their heaviest raids yet on the town of al-Khiam, just north of the border, and destroyed five trucks in strikes in eastern Lebanon. The war started when Hizbollah abducted two soldiers in a July 12 raid into Israel. Calling the abduction an "outrageous provocation", Rice said she would visit the Middle East next week and attend an Italian-hosted international conference in Rome on Wednesday in a bid to secure lasting peace. The United States, Israel's main ally, has rebuffed Lebanon's appeals for an immediate U.N.-backed ceasefire, saying this would not last unless Hizbollah guerrillas, backed by Syria and Iran, were prevented from attacking the Jewish state. Israel responded to humanitarian concerns about its blockade of Lebanon, saying it would ease humanitarian access. U.N. relief agencies have called for safe passage to take vital medical and food supplies to tens of thousands who have fled their homes. Lebanese government and U.N. estimates put the number of displaced at 500,000. Thousands of foreigners have been evacuated from Lebanon. Israel has also waged a military campaign in Gaza since June 28 to recover another soldier, seized by Palestinian militants.

ITN Source | July 22, 2006

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