Israeli Warplanes Hit Lebanon's Christian Areas

The fourth was totally collapsed here at Al Fitar, just south of Batroun, part of a string of beach towns and small ports celebrated for their good fish and firm Christian faith -- and, more recently, strong opposition to Hezbollah.

Residents expressed outrage that Israel would attack their communities. "This surprised us," said Samira Mahfouz, 40, whose house and car windows were shattered by the attack on the nearby bridge. "It really surprised us. I can't tell you how angry we are about this."

Joseph Bassil had gone jogging in the morning coolness with several companions, she and other neighbors said. They decided to return home, but Bassil wanted to make another round because he had skipped his daily jog Thursday, according to Mahfouz's 10-year-old son, Cherbal. When he did, the Israeli missiles crashed down at about 8:15 a.m. and killed him, the neighbors said.

More than 450 Lebanese civilians have been killed in the conflict, along with 26 soldiers and a disputed number of Hezbollah fighters. The tallies range from about 50 announced by the group's leaders to more than 200 claimed by Israeli officers.

The damage to bridges on the main coastal road linking Beirut to northern Lebanon choked the lifeline of relief agencies trying to bring in supplies from the outside, said a spokesman for the United Nations' World Food Program, Robin Lodge. "Today's destruction has given us a severe problem, and it cuts off our only lifeline for humanitarian relief," Lodge said.

Lebanese motorists, who have learned to improvise in repeated rounds of war, quickly found alternate routes, some by the seashore, others on small roads twisting through the mountains. The U.N. spokesman in Lebanon, Khaled Mansour, said a U.N. assessment team did a quick survey of the back routes but was told by the Israel military that it would not be safe.

"We deplore the attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure including our supply line serving to meet the basic humanitarian needs of hundreds of thousands of refugees," he said. "We remind all parties of their obligation under international law."

Mansour said ships loaded with 87,000 tons of fuel for power generation have not been able to leave Cyprus, where they are gathered awaiting guarantees from Israel that they can proceed safely. Israel initially said fuel supplies could come. But with the ships grouped about 17 miles west of the Lebanese coast, the owners were pressing Israel for further written guarantees to keep their insurance premiums down, a senior official explained.

Israeli aircraft also hit Beirut's southern suburbs, at Ouzai near Beirut's international airport. The blasts shook most of the city just as it awoke, rattling windows and setting off car alarms. One soldier was killed and six civilians were injured, according to local officials.

The targets were buildings with Hezbollah offices and other installations, they said.

Israeli planes dropped leaflets on the area, warning residents to leave because more bombing was planned in the days ahead, residents reported.

Moore reported from Jerusalem. Staff writer Nora Boustany in Beirut and correspondent Jonathan Finer in Tzfat contributed to this report.