Lebanese Minister of Public Health Mohammed Jawad Khalife said yesterday
that about 600 Lebanese civilians had been killed in the ongoing Israeli massive
assault in Lebanon, which was launched 16 days ago.
Khalife was quoted by the Lebanese state-run radio as saying that hospitals
across Lebanon had received some 400 bodies so far and that about 150 to 200
people were believed to be still buried under the rubble of buildings destroyed
in Israeli air raids.
The health minister said that rescue teams were unable to reach the destroyed
buildings and retrieve the bodies of the victims due to intense Israeli
bombardments.
Violence erupted in Lebanon on July 12 when Lebanon's Hezbollah guerillas
kidnapped two Israeli soldiers and killed eight during cross-border attacks and
Israel responded by launching a massive onslaught.
Fifty-one Israelis including 18 civilians have been killed in the
over-two-week-old conflict.