"The United Kingdom very much welcomes adoption of this resolution. Its objectives are clear: to bring about a full cessation of hostilities; to create the space for an urgent humanitarian relief effort; and to begin a process leading to a permanent ceasefire and a durable peace," said Beckett in a statement published on the Foreign Office's website.

"This last point is crucial. It is why it has taken long and intensive negotiations to arrive at today's decision," said Beckett, adding that "We needed to achieve a resolution that looked beyond the short-term and held out the prospect of a lasting solution."

The resolution underlined the international community's determination to support the Lebanese people and government in making a new start, she said.

she promised that Britain would take "immediate steps to provide practical and other support to the Government of Lebanon."

She also stressed that the immediate priority is to address the humanitarian crisis.

"The United Nations agencies have been working tirelessly, but have faced extremely difficult conditions on the ground. We hope a full cessation of hostilities will allow for a rapid expansion of these efforts, and those of other relief organizations and bilateral donors," she said.

Meanwhile, Beckett called on all the parties concerned to respect the terms of the resolution in its implementation and urged "those with influence to play their part."

On Friday, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution, calling for Israeli troops withdrawal and authorizing an increase of the existing UN force in Lebanon to 15,000 troops to help Lebanese troops take control of south Lebanon as Israel withdraws.

France and the United States, co-sponsors of the draft resolution, came up with a compromise final version after days of hard wrangling. And the resolution has left out some key demands from both Israel and Lebanon in efforts to produce a workable arrangement.