Israeli ground troops have entered southern Lebanon to attack Hezbollah bases on the border, a government spokesman said Monday. Israel's six-day-old offensive against Hezbollah following the capture of two Israeli soldiers earlier had been an aerial campaign.

The government spokesman, Asaf Shariv, said the Israeli army chief of staff confirmed that ground troops were also in Lebanon.

A civil defence rescuer screams for help as he aprroaches a civilian car that was struck on a bridge by an Israeli warplane missile, in the southern village of Ghaziyeh, near the port city of Sidon Lebanon, Monday July 17, 2006. The unidentified driver was trapped and was burnt. Israel traded fierce barrages for a sixth day Monday, as the latest eruption of warfare in the Middle East showed no sign of easing, with the death toll on both sides rising to more than 200 at least 180 in Lebanon and 24 in Israel. [AP]

Earlier Monday, Israeli fighter bombers pummeled Lebanese infrastructure, setting Beirut's port ablaze and hitting a Hezbollah stronghold in attacks that killed at least 17 people. Hezbollah retaliated by firing rockets that flew farther into Israel than ever before.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair and UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan called for the deployment of international forces to stop the bombardment of Israel and to persuade the Jewish state to stop attacks on Hezbollah, while the European Union said it was considering the deployment of a peacekeeping force.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki also arrived in Syria for talks with the government on the crisis. Syria and Iran have applauded Hezbollah's capture of two Israeli soldiers, which triggered the offensive.

The Katyusha rockets landed in the town of Atlit, about 35 miles south of the border and five miles south of the port city of Haifa, but nobody was hurt.

Hezbollah fired more rockets Monday at Haifa, but no injuries were immediately reported, according to Israeli security officials and medics. Rockets fired by Hezbollah killed eight people there Sunday.

Israeli planes and artillery guns killed 17 people and wounded at least 53 others in overnight attacks, Lebanese security officials said as the death toll from the conflict rose to more than 200 - 196 in Lebanon and 24 in Israel.

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