Lebanese Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh said on Friday that he will urge Arab foreign ministers in their Saturday meeting in Cairo to take a firm and decisive stance on Mideast crises, Egypt's official MENA news agency reported.

Salloukh made the remarks upon his arrival in Cairo. He was here for an emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers about Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip and Lebanon.

"We expect an Arab position against the brutal Israeli aggression on our territories and its land, sea and air siege," MENA quoted Salloukh as saying.

He urged Arab countries and the international community to stop the Israeli aggression against Lebanon, which he said is a breach of international and humanitarian laws.

Also on Friday, Arab League Assistant Secretary-General for Palestinian Affairs Mohamed Sobeih said that Arab foreign ministers would "condemn Israeli aggressions" while supporting Lebanon and the Palestinians in their meeting.

Sobeih was quoted by MENA as saying that Arab foreign ministers would discuss ways to deal with repercussions of Israeli military operations in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories.

Tensions in the Middle East have been dramatically heightened since Israel started a military offensive against Lebanon on Wednesday and pressed ahead with a massive air and ground operation on the Gaza Strip more than two weeks ago.

Dozens of Lebanese have been killed and more than 100 injured in Israeli attacks launched in the wake of a cross-border attack by Lebanese Hezbollah militants Wednesday morning, during which two Israeli soldiers were captured and eight others killed.

While in the Gaza Strip, Israel stepped up a military operation in a bid to rescue a kidnapped soldier and halt Palestinian rocket attacks.

Both Hezbollah and Palestinian militants demanded that Israel release prisoners held in Israeli jails, but Israel rejected the swap idea.