TIME, The journey to Tyre in South Lebanon from Beirut, normally a one hour drive, has become a white-knuckle tear through twisty mountain roads and a bombed-out coastal highway that takes five hours.
We left for Tyre this morning after loading up on food and water for several days. Other correspondents have told us the situation is grim there, and that we need to bring our own supplies. We also considered bringing our own fuel, because the Israelis have reportedly bombed most gas stations in the area, so a black market for fuel has developed. Five gallons of gas now cost $50
BEIRUT, Lebanon – Israeli warplanes struck a minibus carrying people fleeing the fighting Sunday in southern Lebanon, killing three people, Lebanese security officials said, and two people were killed as about 90 Hezbollah rockets fell on northern Israel.
BEIRUT, Lebanon — Fewer restaurants than usual are open, making the narrow street appear dimmer. A staff shortage has owners tending bar, and the menus have thinned.Still, despite the death and destruction wrought by an Israeli offensive against Hezbollah militants, a small and tenacious coterie of war clientele have clung to Beirut’s famed nightlife, hoping for a moment of reprieve from the violence.
TYRE, Lebanon — Soldiers laid 72 coffins in two trenches, a mass grave for victims of the Israeli bombardment. Elsewhere, mounds of rubble sat undisturbed; rescue workers were too fearful of missiles to search for bodies.
Israel massed tanks and troops on the border Friday hours after calling up reserves and confirmed some units were already operating in Lebanon, as the army announced plans for a ground operation to destroy Hezbollah’s tunnels, hideouts and weapons stashes.
DAY 9, BEIRUT, Lebanon – Pitched battles raged between Israeli forces and Hezbollah fighters on the border Thursday, and Israel warned hundreds of thousands of people to flee southern Lebanon "immediately," preparing for a likely ground offensive to set up a buffer zone. U.N. chief Kofi Annan warned of a humanitarian crisis in Lebanon and called for an immediate cease-fire, even as he admitted "serious obstacles" stand in the way of even easing the violence. Annan denounced Israel for "excessive use of force" and Hezbollah for holding "an entire nation hostage" with its rocket attacks and snatching of two Israeli soldiers last week.
After more than a week of punishing Israeli aerial and artillery strikes, Hizb’allah chief Hassan Nasrallah says his group is easily absorbing all that Israel has thrown at it, and continues to successfully control the direction of the current fighting.
UT — At least 55 Lebanese civilians were killed as Israeli warplanes pounded the capital and countryside, making today the deadliest day in a week of attacks and pushing this country’s civilian death toll to more than 300. Fearful Westerners fled the country in droves.Violence also struck northern Israel, where two children were killed in a rocket attack in the town of Nazareth.
BEIRUT, 19 July (IRIN) – Lebanon’s dream of 2006 as a record year for economic growth has in the space of a week turned into a nightmare. Israeli air strikes have brought its fast-growing economy to an almost complete standstill. With thousands of nationals and foreign workers evacuating, and more than 500,000 internally displaced people, a bleak scenario confronts the country’s workforce. "The direct losses are estimated to be nearly half a billion US dollars," said Jihad Azoor, Lebanon’s Finance Minister. "But we have to read this number carefully because we have no way of assessing the situation fully to get an accurate estimate. And more losses occur by the hour."
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Pentagon has ordered five military ships and thousands of Marines and sailors to help transport U.S. citizens out of Lebanon, a move that could sharply speed up the evacuation as fighting continues.


