Israel hits Lebanese city after evacuation orders as US works on 60-day truce plan

BEIRUT: Israel began heavy airstrikes on Wednesday on the historic city of Baalbek and surrounding villages in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa region, security sources told Reuters, following an evacuation order by the Israeli military for the city and its outskirts.

There was no immediate word on casualties. Thousands of people have fled the city since the evacuation order was issued, approximately four hours before the strikes began.

Earlier, the Israeli army issued an evacuation warning for residents Baalbeck, along with surrounding areas and key routes in the Bekaa Valley.


60-day Truce Plan
Even as Israel pressed its offensive, two ources said on Wednesday that the US mediators were working on a proposal to halt hostilities between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, starting with a 60-day ceasefire.

The sources - a person briefed on the talks and a senior diplomat working on Lebanon-told Reuters the two-month period would be used to finalise full implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, adopted in 2006 to keep southern Lebanon free of arms outside state control.

Bilal Raad, the regional head of the Lebanese civil defence, said the largely volunteer force had been calling on residents to leave via megaphones after receiving phone calls from someone identifying themselves as being from the Israeli military. "People are all over each other, the whole city is in a panic trying to figure out where to go, there's a huge traffic jam," he said.

Israel's security cabinet is discussing the terms of a truce with Hezbollah in south Lebanon, where Israeli troops are conducting a ground offensive, energy minister Eli Cohen said Wednesday. "There are discussions, I think it will still take time", Cohen told Israeli radio.

According to Israel's Channel 12 television, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held talks with ministers on Tuesday evening on Israel's demands in return for a 60-day truce. These include an Hezbollah pullback north of the Litani river, some 30 kms from the Israeli frontier, the Lebanese army's deployment along the border, an international intervention mechanism to enforce the truce and a guarantee that Israel will maintain freedom of action in case of threats.

"Thanks to all the army's operations these past months and particularly these past weeks... Israel can come in a position of strength after the entire Hezbollah leadership was eliminated and over 2,000 Hezbollah terrorist infrastructures were hit", said Cohen, a former intelligence minister.

Open to Discussions: Hamas
A Hamas official said Wednesday that the group would discuss any ideas that include an Israeli withdrawal.

"We have not officially received any comprehensive proposal. We are prepared to engage with any ideas or proposals presented to us, provided they ultimately lead to an end to the war and a withdrawal by the army from the (Gaza) Strip," the official told AFP.