Carnage in Lebanon to Continue

Israel has rejected calls for a cease fire over its incursion into Lebanon.

From the BBC:

Israeli Defence Minister Amir Peretz says Israel cannot agree to an immediate ceasefire, despite a partial halt to air strikes on south Lebanon.

Mr Peretz told parliament that if the offensive stopped, "the extremists will rear their heads anew".

He said Israel intended to "expand and strengthen" its operations in Lebanon.

Earlier Israel suspended air raids for 48 hours - apart from those to defend its civilians or troops - to allow an inquiry into civilian deaths at Qana.

At least 54 people, many of them children, were killed in the southern Lebanese village on Sunday when the house in which they were sheltering was hit by Israeli war planes - the deadliest Israeli raid since hostilities began on 12 July.

Hezbollah militants may have started it, but clearly Israel continues to be the loser on the world stage.