Russia demands immediate ceasefire in Middle East

Russia on Thursday demanded an immediate halt to the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.

"We resolutely demand an immediate ceasefire. This demand is supported by the majority of members of the international community," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement posted on its website.

"Russia is applying energetic efforts in the UN Security Council and in contact with all our international and regional partners in order to achieve this goal. We expect that in the next few days the Security Council will manage to reach coordinated decisions, which will allow a lasting peace to be established in the region," the ministry said.

The continuing bloodshed in the Middle East causes Russia's most serious concern, the statement said.

Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said on Thursday over 900 Lebanese had been killed and about 3,000 people had been injured in Israel's three-week offensive against Hezbollah.

Dozens of Israeli soldiers and civilians have been killed in rocket attacks by Hezbollah.

The U.N. Security Council on Wednesday postponed a meeting to discuss the deployment of an international peacekeeping force in Lebanon. Disagreements between France and the United States have twice delayed the meeting.

The United States and France, which have been involved in intense discussions on measures to tackle the Mideast crisis, are at loggerheads over the timing of the deployment of the new international force for Lebanon.

France, considered a possible leader of the international force, wants a political agreement on how to end the three-week conflict to be worked out first while the United States pushes for an early deployment of peacekeepers to help impose a ceasefire. Source: Xinhua