Israel approves UN ceasefire agreement

TYRE – Israel yesterday approved a UN resolution on ending the month-long Lebanon war but pressed on with deadly bombing raids, flattening homes and bridges and setting petrol stations ablaze A senior Israeli government official told that 24 cabinet ministers voted in favour of UN Security Council resolution 1701 and one abstained.

The Lebanese government, which includes ministers from the Hezbollah movement whose militia Israeli troops have been fighting for a month, approved the resolution on Saturday. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said a ceasefire would come into effect today at 0500 GMT, raising hopes of an end to the bloodshed which has claimed the lives of more than 1 000 Lebanese and some 150 Israelis.But with Hezbollah vowing to fight until the last Israeli soldier leaves Lebanon and Israel stressing that it will respond to any attack on its troops or rocket fire, the prospect of a complete ceasefire in the immediate future looked dim.Less than 24 hours before the halt to hostilities was due to take effect, Hezbollah rocket fire and fighting in south Lebanon continued unabated.An Israeli man was killed by a Hezbollah rocket attack in the north of the country as the Shiite militia fired 155 rockets at the Jewish state by early afternoon.And at least 24 Israeli soldiers were killed in combat Saturday, the highest single-day toll since the war began on July 12.Five of them died when Hezbollah guerrillas shot down a helicopter.In what the media have said is the largest ground operation since the 1973 Middle East war, Israel is sweeping through south Lebanon where Hezbollah is rooted, with some troops reaching the strategic Litani River which runs as far as 30 kilometres from the border.Fighter jets also pounded targets in the south, east and north of Lebanon, and at least 13 civilians were killed, including a mother and her three children, Lebanese police said.In Tyre, Israeli warplanes bombed five petrol stations, sparking a huge fire that threatened to engulf a nearby hospital.In addition to the heavy death toll in Lebanon, more than 900 000 people have been displaced by Israeli bombardments that have left much of the country’s infrastructure in ruins.The UN resolution, drafted by the United States and France, calls for all Israeli troops to withdraw from southern Lebanon after an end to the fighting.It also calls for the release of the two captive Israeli soldiers whose seizure on July 12 triggered the conflict, and for a solution to the issue of Lebanese prisoners held by Israel.The resolution authorises an increase in the current UN Interim Force in Lebanon’s strength to a maximum of 15 000 troops from about 1 990 now.They will be matched by the 15 000 troops Lebanon plans to send to the south.While approving the resolution, the Lebanese cabinet expressed reservations that it did not go far enough in condemning the large-scale Israeli destruction and that it failed to address the issue of the Israeli-occupied Shebaa farms.The UN resolution unanimously adopted Friday by the Security Council, calls for a full cessation of hostilities and the deployment of a 15 000-strong international force in southern Lebanon.Nampa-AFPUN Secretary General Kofi Annan said a ceasefire would come into effect today at 0500 GMT, raising hopes of an end to the bloodshed which has claimed the lives of more than 1 000 Lebanese and some 150 Israelis.But with Hezbollah vowing to fight until the last Israeli soldier leaves Lebanon and Israel stressing that it will respond to any attack on its troops or rocket fire, the prospect of a complete ceasefire in the immediate future looked dim.Less than 24 hours before the halt to hostilities was due to take effect, Hezbollah rocket fire and fighting in south Lebanon continued unabated.An Israeli man was killed by a Hezbollah rocket attack in the north of the country as the Shiite militia fired 155 rockets at the Jewish state by early afternoon.And at least 24 Israeli soldiers were killed in combat Saturday, the highest single-day toll since the war began on July 12.Five of them died when Hezbollah guerrillas shot down a helicopter.In what the media have said is the largest ground operation since the 1973 Middle East war, Israel is sweeping through south Lebanon where Hezbollah is rooted, with some troops reaching the strategic Litani River which runs as far as 30 kilometres from the border.Fighter jets also pounded targets in the south, east and north of Lebanon, and at least 13 civilians were killed, including a mother and her three children, Lebanese police said.In Tyre, Israeli warplanes bombed five petrol stations, sparking a huge fire that threatened to engulf a nearby hospital.In addition to the heavy death toll in Lebanon, more than 900 000 people have been displaced by Israeli bombardments that have left much of the country’s infrastructure in ruins.The UN resolution, drafted by the United States and France, calls for all Israeli troops to withdraw from southern Lebanon after an end to the fighting.It also calls for the release of the two captive Israeli soldiers whose seizure on July 12 triggered the conflict, and for a solution to the issue of Lebanese prisoners held by Israel.The resolution authorises an increase in the current UN Interim Force in Lebanon’s strength to a maximum of 15 000 troops from about 1 990 now.They will be matched by the 15 000 troops Lebanon plans to send to the south.While approving the resolution, the Lebanese cabinet expressed reservations that it did not go far enough in condemning the large-scale Israeli destruction and that it failed to address the issue of the Israeli-occupied Shebaa farms.The UN resolution unanimously adopted Friday by the Security Council, calls for a full cessation of hostilities and the deployment of a 15 000-strong international force in southern Lebanon.Nampa-AFP