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LEBANON-BISHOPS Jul-21-2006 (390 words) xxxi
Lebanese bishops ask U.N. to seek cease-fire to protect civilians
By Doreen Abi Raad
Catholic News Service
FORDS, N.J. (CNS) -- Lebanon's Maronite Catholic bishops asked the U.N. Security Council to pass "an immediate resolution for a cease-fire, out of mercy for innocent civilians."
In an eight-point statement following an emergency meeting July 21, the bishops also said the Israeli response to the July 12 kidnapping of two Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah militants "does not deserve the dismembering of a whole country, killing hundreds of citizens and starving most of the inhabitants."
The bishops said Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon have "crippled the country, following the bombing of the runways of its airports, most of its bridges and roads, some electric power stations, most public utilities" and communications networks.
"Neither reason nor logic can justify these events," the bishops said.
They said "the tragic situation the Lebanese are living," should make everyone forget political differences. They added that it was "not the time for settling accounts; it is the time to deal with events with all possible solidarity, understanding and courage."
The bishops pointed out that bombing has been focused on most roads, "causing the isolation of the majority of towns and villages ... rendering the arrival of food and medical supplies impossible." They called on international aid agencies to help the people and urged all Lebanese to welcome the displaced.
They prayed that God would "shorten for the Lebanese the days of calamity and bring about peace in their hearts and land."
They also thanked the leaders of churches in other countries for their expressions of solidarity.
Cardinal Nasrallah P. Sfeir, Maronite patriarch, presided over the meeting the day after his return from a pastoral visit to the United States. On July 18, he met with Vice President Dick Cheney and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to discuss the situation in his homeland.
The bishops' statement came after 10 days of Israeli airstrikes against what it claimed were Hezbollah strongholds and as Israeli ground troops appeared to have crossed into southern Lebanon.
By July 21 the fighting had killed at least 312 people, mostly civilians, in Lebanon, and displaced half a million. Thirty-four Israeli troops and civilians have been killed, reported Reuters, the British news agency.
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Doreen Abi Raad, who covers Lebanon for Catholic News Service, was in New Jersey when the fighting started.
END
Copyright (c) 2006 Catholic News Service/USCCB. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed.
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