Iran calls for intl. probe into Israeli atrocities
“Iran calls for the establishment of an international investigative committee to probe the ongoing atrocities of the Zionist regime in Lebanon and to prosecute and punish those responsible for these inhumane catastrophes,” Asefi added.
He also strongly condemned the Israeli attack on Qana which killed 26 farm workers, most of them Syrian, on Friday.
“Regrettably, the Zionist regime is continuing its outrageous massacre of innocents and citizens, with a green light from the Security Council.
“The Security Council has to be held accountable for its silence, which has led to the continued bloodshed and emboldened Israeli officials to continue the massacre, making a mockery of all human rights principles,” he said.
The Lebanese government says at least 880 civilians have been killed so far in addition to 27 police or government troops. Four UN observers and a peacekeeper have also been killed.
Israel seeks to extend the war to other countries, but the continuation of its atrocities will only encourage regional countries to support Hezbollah’s legitimate resistance even more, Asefi observed.
Hezbollah rockets land north of Tel Aviv
Three rockets hit the Israeli town of Hadera 40 kilometres (25 miles) north of Tel Aviv on Friday, Israel's private Channel 10 television said.
The strike was the deepest that missiles fired by the Lebanese Shiite movement have hit inside Israel, some 70 kilometres south of the frontier, and came after Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Thursday threatened to hit Tel Aviv.
"The Islamic Resistance bombarded the town of Hadera, which is 75 kilometres from the Lebanese frontier, with a salvo of Khaibar-1 rockets," the movement's Al-Manar television station said. The Khaibar-1 has a much greater range and bigger warhead than the Katyusha rockets usually fired by Hezbollah.
U.S., France OK UN Mideast truce pact
The United States and France reached agreement on a draft resolution Saturday calling for "a full cessation of hostilities" between Israel and Hezbollah and setting the terms for a possible negotiated settlement of the war and deployment of a UN-mandated international force in the region.
After days of diplomatic deadlock, U.S. Ambassador John Bolton confirmed the first hopeful development in the 25-day conflict. The Security Council was scheduled to meet at 3 p.m. to discuss the proposed terms. "We are prepared to move as quickly as other members of the council want to move," he told reporters in New York Saturday morning.
"We are prepared to continue to work tomorrow to make progress."
"This is the first step of a great result," said a French envoy speaking on condition of anonymity because of ongoing diplomacy.
Lebanon: fuel shortage may shut hospitals treating wounded
Hospitals treating thousands of wounded in Lebanon have fuel for only one more week and many will have to close if Israel keeps up a blockade on the country, the health minister warned on Saturday.
"Hospitals only have fuel for one more week, some even less. Many of them will have to close if fuel shipments continued to be blocked," Mohamad Khalifeh told AFP.
"This is a pressing question, and it is alarming. We are engaged in contacts with all concerned parties to resolve this crisis," he said.
Israel refuses to allow the shipment of much-needed fuel, particularly for power plants.
Israel turns to commandos
Unable to prevent rockets nearly a month into its massive Lebanon offensive, Israel once again turned to elite troops Saturday, sending navy commandos into the coastal city of Tyre under cover of darkness.
"Guided by very precise intelligence, navy commandos entered an apartment on the second floor of a five-story building in the north of Tyre, where they killed at least three Hezbollah leaders," the official told news agencies on condition of anonymity.
He said the three men were "responsible for firing a missile against the city of Hadera" late Friday, without elaborating.
There was no immediate Hezbollah reaction to the claim.