Israel to Suspend Lebanon Airstrikes for 2 Days
Israel has agreed to a 48-hour halt in aerial activity over southern Lebanon, a U.S. official said Sunday amid widespread outrage over an Israeli airstrike that killed at least 56 Lebanese, mostly women and children, when it leveled a building where they had taken shelter.
The announcement of the pause in overflights — made by State Department spokesman Adam Ereli — appeared to reflect American pressure on Israel. Ereli, who was in Israel with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, said Israel has reserved the right to hit targets if it learns that attacks are being prepared against them. There was no immediate confirmation by Israeli officials.
The stunning bloodshed in Lebanon earlier on Sunday prompted Rice to cut short her Mideast mission and intensified world demands on Washington to back an immediate end to the fighting.
[Associated Press | July 30, 2006]