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World leaders head for Beirut as conflict spirals

Atul Aneja

Annan, Blair propose deployment of peace force in Lebanon

PHOTO AP

SEEKING TARGET: In this photo made available by the Israeli Defence Force, an artillery unit fires a shell toward south Lebanon from a position in northern Israel on Monday.

DUBAI: With the conflict between Israel and the Lebanese militant group, Hizbollah, continuing to spiral, an energetic diplomatic effort has been mounted to address the crisis.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan and British Prime Minister Tony Blair have proposed the deployment of an international military force in southern Lebanon. Speaking on the sidelines of the G8 summit in St. Petersburg, Mr. Blair hoped that such a force would prevent Hizbollah from mounting rocket attacks against Israel. That, in turn, might discourage Israel from persisting with its military campaign in Lebanon. Israel, however, has responded unenthusiastically to the proposal, saying it was "too early" to discuss positioning a new international peacekeeping force in south Lebanon.

Attacks stepped up

Stepping up its attacks on Monday, Hizbollah fired more rockets into Haifa, striking a building in the city, causing it to collapse. Preliminary reports suggest that at least 20 persons have been wounded in this attack.

Hizbollah had on Sunday threatened to attack the petrochemical complex in the city after killing eight persons during a strike on the railway station. Rockets also landed in the town of Atlit, about 8 km from Haifa.

Israeli authorities have denied a Hizbollah claim that one of its planes had been shot down. Israel last week had accused Hizbollah of disabling one of its warships, using an Iranian missile.

On Monday, 19 persons, including Lebanese soldiers, were killed when Israeli planes fired missiles at a military base in the northern city of Tripoli, the port of Beirut and the Hizbollah stronghold of Baalbek in the Bekka Valley. Two civilians were killed during the attack on Beirut harbour. Israeli ground troops also briefly crossed the Lebanese border but returned after attacking Hizbollah posts.

The European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana is in Beirut, marking the beginning of diplomatic activism to defuse the crisis.

French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin is also arriving in the Lebanese capital, while U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has hinted that she too might travel to the region. The U.N. special envoy, Terje Roed-Larson, earlier arrived in Beirut on Sunday. Besides, Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi telephoned Iran's Supreme National Security head, Ali Larijani, seeking Iran's "active role" to defuse tensions.

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki has arrived in Damascus for consultations with his Syrian counterpart.

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