UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Tuesday lamented Monday's exchange of fire across the Israel-Lebanon border and called on Lebanon's Hezbollah militias and Israel to exercise utmost restraint.

Annan "deplores in the strongest terms the exchange of fire across the Blue Line yesterday, which resulted in the reported deaths of several Hezbollah fighters and an unconfirmed number of wounded on both sides," a UN spokesman told reporters.

The Blue Line was the withdrawal line for Israeli troops who left southern Lebanon in May 2000 and is a temporary border between Israel and Lebanon.

"The secretary-general appeals to all parties to respect the Blue Line in its entirety," spokesman Stephanie Dujarric said. "He also calls on the government of Lebanon to extend its authority over all of its territory in accordance with Security Council resolutions."

"The secretary-general appeals for a return to calm and calls on all parties to exercise utmost restraint."

The spokesman said the UN peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon has brokered a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon to prevent further escalation of the latest hostilities.

Source: Xinhua