Rice arrives in Israel for talks on Lebanon war

JERUSALEM, July 29 (Reuters) US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Israel today for fresh talks on ways of ending an 18-day-old conflict between the Jewish state and Lebanon's Hizbollah guerrillas.

Rice, who arrived from Malaysia, was due to meet Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to discuss the outlines of a UN Security Council resolution and the possible deployment of an international force in south Lebanon.

Israel has rejected a UN plea for a 72-hour truce to allow aid to reach civilians trapped by fighting.

''She comes to present concrete ideas...She will be able to tell us exactly what kind of international force has to be sent here and what kind of resolution has to be passed by the UnitedNations,'' Israeli government spokesman Avi Pazner said earlier.

Rice, who will meet Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora later in her mission, said hours before she landed in Tel Aviv that she expected her talks to be tough.

Israel has killed at least 469 people, mostly civilians, in Lebanon since Hizbollah fighters seized two of its soldiers in a cross-border raid on July 12. Hizbollah has killed 51 Israelis, including 18 civilians, in rocket and other attacks.

US President George W. Bush has said the conflict is part of a wider struggle against terrorism and any strategy to end the violence must address the threat posed by Hizbollah.

REUTERS SKU ND2048