Israel's 27-day-old offensive in the Lebanon has killed 925 people, mostly civilians, and left 75 missing and presumed dead, the Lebanese government has said. At least 64 were killed today, prompting an emotional call for a ceasefire from Lebanese prime minister Fouad Siniora.
He was speaking after an Israeli air raid that killed 40 civilians sheltering from fighting in a southern village.
Residents of the village of Houla said they feared up to 60 people, including many children, had been killed. They said most of the people were shepherds who had refused to flee the fighting.
"An hour ago, a horrific massacre took place in Houla village as a result of the intentional Israeli bombardment that resulted in more than 40 martyrs," Mr Siniora told an Arab foreign ministers meeting in Beirut.
His eyes brimming with tears as he spoke about the suffering of civilians, Mr Siniora demanded "a quick and decisive" ceasefire and Israeli withdrawal from south Lebanon.
An Israeli army 155 mm mobile artillery piece fires into Lebanon from the frontier in Fasuta
He also called for a prisoner exchange and for Israel to show where it planted landmines.
But Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert re-iterated that the campaign will not stop. Israel is pressing ahead with its offensive while world powers struggle to agree a UN resolution to end the fighting.
Hizbollah says it will fight on until Israel stops bombing Lebanon and pulls out its forces. Earlier its fighters attacked Israeli forces near Houla, wounding five soldiers.
As diplomatic efforts to end the 27-day-old war between Israel and Hizbollah guerrillas stalled, air raids elsewhere in the south and the Bekaa Valley killed at least 24 Lebanese and Israel said it may expand its ground offensive.
Opposition from Lebanon caused the United States and France to delay a vote on a UN resolution. They may submit a revised text after Security Council consultations later today.
Lebanon has demanded the draft resolution include a call for an immediate withdrawal of some 10,000 Israeli troops from its soil.
Speaking before news of the Houla raid, Lebanese Health Minister Mohammad Khalifeh said the war had killed 925 people, mostly civilians, with 75 missing, presumed dead. About one-third of the dead were children under the age of 13, he said.
Ninety-four Israelis have also been killed.
The Israeli army says it has killed more than 400 Hizbollah guerrillas but Lebanese security sources put the figure at around 90.
Hizbollah continued its battle with Israeli forces occupying a swathe of territory in south Lebanon today, killing at least one Israeli soldier and wounding several others.
Al Arabiya television said three Israeli soldiers were killed in the south, where some 10,000 troops are trying to push Hizbollah away from the border to limit rocket fire into northern Israel.