News from our side of the world

I guess many of you are already following what is happening now just a few kilometers away from Haifa... In case you haven't had a chance to read about it yet, I am posting some news from BBC web side. Surprisingly I am quite calm about it, it is a big improvement considering that when I just arrived here I was refusing to ride buses and trains due to my panic fear of bombings. Now I take it as another contraction in a labor of the New World Order. Another pain that needs to be lived through...

Beirut airport is Lebanon's only international airport

Israel has attacked Beirut airport and launched raids across southern Lebanon killing 27 people, in a major offensive after two of its soldiers were seized.

Israeli strikes also hit a TV station run by the militant group Hezbollah, which captured the soldiers on Tuesday and has demanded a prisoner exchange.

The Israeli military said it had imposed a naval blockade on Lebanon.

The offensive came as Israel continued a separate offensive in the Gaza Strip over another captured soldier.

Israeli jets attacked the Palestinian foreign ministry building in Gaza City.

At least 10 people were reported injured in the attack, which was said to have badly damaged the building.

'Act of war'

The operation follows the capture of Israeli soldier, Cpl Gilad Shalit, by Palestinian militants two weeks ago.

The offensive in Lebanon follows a day of heavy fighting in which the Israelis suffered their worst losses on the border for several years. Eight Israeli soldiers were killed and two wounded.

Israel has said it holds Lebanon responsible for the soldiers' capture and views it as an "act of war".

Israel hits Gaza ministry What is Hezbollah? Capture marks escalation

Three rockets hit runways at Beirut airport, the country's only international airport, early on Thursday.

The airport, which is located in the Lebanese capital's Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs, was closed and flights diverted.

The Israeli military confirmed that its aircraft had struck the facility.

"The airport is used as a central hub for the transfer of weapons and supplies to the Hezbollah terrorist organisation," an Israeli army spokesman said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties at the airport.

A military spokesman said Israel had imposed a sea blockade on Lebanon. The country shares a land border with Syria.

Ten of the dead in the overnight air raids were children.

Israel said its jets also hit 40 Hezbollah targets.

At least 10 members of one family were reported killed in Dweir village.

Hezbollah guerrillas responded by firing volleys of rockets at the northern Israeli coastal town of Nahariya.

A 40-year-old woman was killed when her home was struck by a rocket, medics said. The Israeli military confirmed the death.

Israeli PM Ehud Olmert said the soldiers' capture was an "act of war", but Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah insisted the two would only be returned via talks.

Mr Olmert said he held Beirut responsible, but Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora denied any knowledge of the Hezbollah operation and refused to take responsibility for the soldiers' capture. Before targeting the airport, Israel launched night air strikes on bridges and roads in southern Lebanon. Many bridges were destroyed.

The BBC's Kim Ghattas in Beirut says it is the first time in a decade that Beirut airport had been hit by Israeli fire.

The airport, rebuilt after the civil war, is a symbol of national pride for the people of Lebanon, our correspondent adds