Diplomacy gains traction in sixth day of Israel-Hezbollah fighting

BEIRUT, Lebanon — Diplomatic efforts to end Israeli-Hezbollah fighting gained traction Monday, with Israeli officials saying they would agree to halt fighting if their two captured soldiers were returned and Islamic guerrillas withdrew from the border.

Publicly, the officials continued to insist their goal was to dismantle Hezbollah. But senior aides to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he told his Italian counterpart, Romano Prodi, that Israel would accept cease-fire terms of Hezbollah releasing the Israeli soldiers and withdrawing from the border.

On Sunday, Lebanese officials said Israel had sent the terms of a possible cease-fire through Italian mediators. The terms were the release of the two captured soldiers, and a Hezbollah pullback to roughly 20 miles from the Israeli-Lebanese border.

Hezbollah-patron Iran, meanwhile, said a cease-fire was feasible and U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan's special political adviser emerged from talks with Lebanon's prime minister to say he would present Israel with "concrete ideas" to end the fighting.

"We have made some promising first efforts on the way forward," Vijay Nambiar told reporters, while warning that "much diplomatic work needs to be done" before the conflict ends.

Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki — in Damascus, Syria, for talks with Vice President Farouk al-Sharaa — said a cease-fire and prisoner exchange would be acceptable and fair.

"We believe that we should think of an acceptable and fair (deal) to resolve this," he said. "In fact, there can be a cease-fire followed by a prisoner swap."

A senior official said Israel would agree to a cease-fire if the Lebanese guerrillas withdraw from the border area with Israel and release the two captured Israeli soldiers.

The official, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the diplomacy, said Olmert had conveyed Israel's position to Italy's prime minister, who is trying to broker a cease-fire deal.

Israel had previously demanded the full dismantling of Hezbollah as a condition for ending hostilities — and on Monday it continued to press that demand in its public statements. However, the senior official, who is close to the negotiations, said Israel would agree to Hezbollah merely leaving the border area — with the Lebanese army taking its place.