Lebanon PM Demands Ceasefire, Appeals for Aid

Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora called on Saturday for an immediate ceasefire, saying Israeli attacks had turned Lebanon into a disaster area in need of international aid.

"We call for an immediate ceasefire backed by the United Nations," Siniora said in a televised message to the nation. "I declare today that Lebanon is a disaster zone in need of a comprehensive and speedy Arab plan ... and (it) pleads to its friends in the world to rush to its aid."

In his speech, the Lebanese prime minister again tried to renounce his government's responsibility of what was taking place in Lebanon. He implicitly hinted that he accepts Israel's stance and that his government plans to work to deploy its army on all the country's territory ? a move which Hizbullah has opposed so far.

"The government declared from the beginning that it did not know about the kidnapping operation in advance. Israel has no right to destroy Lebanon. Lebanon cannot fulfill its role if it is the last to know what is happening, but the first to pay the price," the desperate prime minister said.