Mideast truce efforts intensify over Gaza fighting

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Guerrillas in Lebanon rocketed northern Israel on Wednesday for the second time in a week, drawing Israeli artillery fire and threatening to drag the Jewish state into a second front as diplomatic efforts to broker a truce in Gaza intensified.

In Egypt, U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon issued a new call to immediately end the fighting: "It is intolerable that civilians bear the brunt of this conflict," he said.

Egypt's foreign minister, whose nation has been instrumental in cease-fire talks, said he had received Hamas' latest proposal and would convey it to the Israelis. Without revealing details, he indicated an agreement was near and a Hamas spokesman said the militant group had "no other choice."

Israel showed little sign of slowing its bruising 19-day-old offensive against Hamas, striking some 60 targets in the strip bordering southern Israel. One airstrike hit an overcrowded cemetery, spreading body parts and rotting flesh over a wide area. The army said the airstrike targeted a weapons cache hidden nearby.

Israel launched the onslaught in Gaza on Dec. 27, seeking to punish the ruling Hamas militant group for years of rocket attacks on southern Israel. The offensive has killed 1,000 Palestinians, about half of them civilians, including 300 children, Gaza health ministry official Dr. Moaiya Hassanain said. The toll included 11 Palestinians killed Wednesday, medical officials said.

Thirteen Israelis have also been killed since the offensive began, four by rocket fire from Gaza.

The rocket fire from Lebanon caused no injuries, but sent residents scurrying to shelter. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed guerrilla group that fought a monthlong war with Israel in 2006, denied involvement in last week's attack, and speculation focused on small Palestinian groups.

Lebanese security officials said the Israeli army fired at least eight artillery shells on south Lebanon in response. There were no reports of Lebanese injuries from the retaliatory fire.

The Israeli military said it targeted the source of the rockets, and that it regarded the Lebanese government and military responsible for preventing attacks on Israel. The government of Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora condemned the attack.

Israel repeatedly has said it does not seek renewed fighting with Lebanon, but is prepared for hostilities along the northern border. The Muslim world has expressed outrage over Israel's Gaza offensive, and in a new condemnation Wednesday, al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden urged Muslims to launch a holy war against Israel.

Ban, the U.N. chief, called for intensified negotiations "to provide arrangements and guarantees in order to sustain an endurable cease-fire and calm." Ban is scheduled to arrive in Israel on Thursday.

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