The New York Times on the Web

  Monday, July 31, 2006

 NEWS ANALYSIS

From Carnage in Lebanon, a Concession

By HELENE COOPER

Israel agreed to suspend airstrikes in its first

significant concession, but the U.S. is still not calling

for an immediate cease-fire.

EXCERPTS 

..... By refusing to call for an immediate cease-fire, even in the face of the Qana bombing, Ms. Rice was teetering on the edge of a public relations disaster, particularly in the Arab world. All day on Sunday, scenes of dead children being pulled out of the wreckage at Qana dominated the airwaves.

But American officials continued to say that, despite the civilian death toll, an immediate cease-fire would do little good unless underlying issues were first addressed, including the ultimate disarmament of Hezbollah.

In the meantime, Israeli officials continued to say, publicly, that they needed more time to diminish Hezbollah’s military abilities, and America’s insistence on reaching agreement on a political package before calling for a cease-fire worked to give Israel that time.

But that left the impression that Ms. Rice and the Bush administration were willing to stomach the killing of innocent children to reach their larger aims…