Lebanese hope U.N. resolution means end of war

BEIRUT, Aug 13 (Reuters) On the streets and in refugee centres, many Lebanese hope a newly-adopted UN resolution will help end the war between Israel and Hizbollah but fear Israel may prolong its ground offensive in the south.

The Security Council resolution unanimously adopted on Friiday called for the full cessation of the month-long war and authorised up to 15,000 UN troops to enforce a truce. But Israel launched an expanded ground offensive even though Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he backed the resolution.

''This is an encouraging step but it is only just talk at the moment,'' said Naji Abi-Asaad, 30, who owns a shoe store.

''My store has been closed for a month. We have suffered a lot, so this is a good step but we have to wait for the implementation on the ground.'' Animosity and mistrust towards Israel is deeply rooted among many Lebanese who recall past invasions and the Jewish state's 22-year occupation of south Lebanon that ended in 2000.

The Lebanese government, which includes two Hizbollah ministers, was expected to endorse the resolution later yesterday. Israeli officials said Olmert will urge members of his cabinet to follow suit today.

The war, ignited when Hizbollah captured two Israeli soldiers on July 12, has taken a heavy toll on Lebanese civilians and ravaged the already embattled economy.

More than 1,000 people have been killed in Lebanon and one million displaced. Hizbollah attacks have killed 124 Israelis.

''We will support the government decision whatever it is, but Israel does not respect anything,'' said John Bassily, puffing on a Cuban cigar in front of his closed restaurant in central Beirut, an area usually bustling with tourists at the height of the summer season.

''See what they did to the civilian convoy yesterday?'' Hours before the UN vote, Israeli rockets hit a convoy of hundreds of civilian cars fleeing southern Lebanon, killing at least seven people and wounding 36, the Lebanese Red Cross said.

Israel said later the attack was a mistake.

At Beirut's Sanayeh public park, sheltering hundreds of refugees who fled the Israeli bombardment, Ali Ahmed said he hoped the resolution would mean a quick return for him, his wife and six children to their home in the southern village of Haris.

''But we won't feel safe even if the war is over,'' he said, watching his children play near a car distributing food and nappies among the displaced families. ''As long as we have Israel on the border, we won't feel safe.'' Ali Fawwaz, a 61-year-old civil servant, disagreed.

''The war will be over soon because ... Israel would not want to stay in Lebanon for long and take more casualties,'' he said, as he passed through a square in central Beirut decorated with pictures of children killed during Israeli attacks.

REUTERS LL KP0844