The United States has said that it is deeply troubled by fresh violence in Lebanon and the possibility that it would make Middle East peace talks even more difficult. Today, an Israeli soldier and a member of the Israeli backed South Lebanon Army, the SLA, were killed in separate attacks by Hizbollah guerrillas in Israel's self declared security zone in southern Lebanon.
The deaths came a day after at least 17 people were wounded when Israel warplanes pounded Lebanon in retaliation for the deaths of five Israeli soldiers in the area in the past fortnight. A US State Department official again called on the Israeli, Lebanese and Syrian governments to exercise "maximum restraint". The Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Barak, said however that the attacks were intended as a signal to Lebanon, Hizbollah and even the Syrians.
The Irish Defence Forces say that the situation is tense, but that none of the 600 Irish soldiers stationed in the region was involved. Hizbollah guerrillas said earlier today that they would respond to the Israeli air-raids on civilian targets in Lebanon by attacking settlements in northern Israel.
Israeli cabinet minister, Haim Ramon, has said that his country would no longer abide by an agreement to protect civilians from military actions in Lebanon. The minister, who serves in the office of the Prime Minister, said that Israel was no longer willing to observe a 1996 accord under which Israeli troops and Lebanese-backed guerrillas agreed not to target civilians or launch attacks from civilian areas.
His comments followed the overnight air raids on power stations in Lebanon, which were in retaliation for Hizbollah killing of Israeli soldiers in South Lebanon. The Lebanese capital, Beirut, was plunged into darkness during the night after Israeli aircraft bombed the city's main power station. Two other powers stations were also attacked, one in the port of Tripoli and the other in the eastern town of Baalbek. The authorities in Baalbek said that the headquarters of the militant Hizbollah group in the town was also targeted.
