Israel rejects ceasefire calls, hits Beirut again

Israel rejected global calls on Thursday for a ceasefire with the Hezbollah movement, defying its biggest ally Washington and pressing ahead with strikes that have killed hundreds in Lebanon and heightened fears of an all-out regional war.

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Despite Israel's stance, the US and France sought to keep prospects alive for an immediate 21-day truce they proposed on Wednesday, and said negotiations continued, including on the sidelines of a United Nations meeting in New York.

An Israeli warplane struck the edges of the capital Beirut, killing two people and wounding 15, including a woman in critical condition, Lebanon's health ministry said. That took deaths overnight and on Thursday to 28 and over 600 since Monday.