Attacks Cost More Israeli, Lebanese Lives in Seventh Day of Fighting

JONATHAN MILLER, ITV News Correspondent:

The Israeli air force is striking targets right across Lebanon. This, South Beirut this morning, the Shiite suburb that's Hezbollah's heartland reduced to urban wasteland.

In the eastern Bekaa Valley towards Syria, the road to Damascus bombed again today. Lebanon's health ministry saying this truck was carrying medical supplies donated by the United Arab Emirates, its driver killed. Reports a donated ambulance was also destroyed.

The Lebanese president, Emil Lahoud, visited one of two Lebanese army bases hit last night. In this one, 11 soldiers reported killed, 35 wounded, even though Israel maintains it only has Hezbollah in its sights.

He told gathered soldiers that, with their faith in Lebanon, "we will be able to resist."

If you can't flee the country, you head for the mountains. High in the Shouf range, east of Beirut, Shia Muslims who'd fled the south are being looked after by local Druze and Maronite Christians, 450 are in this school, 35 families yesterday. They feel safer here, but Israeli warplanes overhead constantly.

Most of the people here come from a village way down south called Bazuriyah. Now, it's a village that's distinguished by one thing: It happens to be the home village of Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, the Hezbollah leader. And that could explain, of course, why they were so heavily bombed.

Nonetheless, they're expressing pretty much blanket support still for Hezbollah, despite all they've been through.

LEBANESE CITIZEN (through translator):

The whole world seems to want to ensure the Israeli prisoners are treated well, but what would they say if they saw the wounded that I've seen, the scattered flesh? What would they say? "These people don't deserve dignity, too"? "They have no value"?

JONATHAN MILLER:

Tonight, those Beirutis who looked out to sea would have watched those lucky enough to have foreign passports escape the maelstrom that's enveloped this country.