BBC News _ Aug. 22, 2006
Italy has said it would be willing to lead a force to police the ceasefire in southern Lebanon.
France had been expected to shoulder the task, but has expressed concern about the lack of a clear mandate for the force, and offered only 200 troops.
Meanwhile, Israeli troops shot three men they suspected of being Hezbollah fighters in an incident correspondents say underscores the truce`s fragility.
Israel says the men were approaching its troops in "a threatening manner".
Two of the men died and a third was injured in the incident near the Lebanese village of Shama, about 4km (2.5 miles) from the border with Israel, the Israeli military said.
The ceasefire is in its ninth day, but Israeli troops remain in southern Lebanon and both sides accuse each other of violations.
An Israeli commando raid deep into Lebanon on Saturday was condemned by the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan as a violation of the ceasefire.
`Positive role`
In Italy, Prime Minister Romano Prodi said his country was willing to lead the planned international force.
Italy has indicated it could offer up to 3,000 troops - the most substantial offer so far - but has not given a firm commitment.
Mr Prodi said UN Secretary General Kofi Annan would make a decision on the force by the weekend.
Italy`s "positive role" was welcomed by the Lebanese cabinet, Information Minister Gazi Afridi said.
Israel has already said it would be happy if Italy led the force.
But Italy`s offer to lead the force appears to be conditional on an agreement being reached on a new UN resolution, the AFP news agency reported.
The agency quoted Mr Prodi as saying a new resolution should provide "a specific mandate, specific contents and a very clear definition of the alliances".
At a hastily-convened news conference on Monday, President Bush announced that the US would boost its aid package to Lebanon to $230m (£121m), and said there was an urgent need for the bolstered force.
The ultimate goal, he said, of disarming Hezbollah could only come once a "security zone" was created along the border.
He said European reservations over the force`s mandate would be addressed by more "robust" rules of engagement. Officials later said, however, he was not proposing a new UN resolution.
Deputy UN Secretary General Mark Malloch Brown said he was still hopeful that European countries, including France, would commit more forces.
He also rejected Israel`s view that countries it has no diplomatic relations with - such as Malaysia and Indonesia - should be excluded from the peacekeeping force.
"Yes [the force] must enjoy the confidence of Israel, but that doesn`t give them a right to blackball individual contributions," he said.
"We`ll expect them to look at... the totality of the force and whether it represents a broad multilateral balance."
Rejected calls
UN Resolution 1701 calls for 15,000 troops to be deployed to uphold the ceasefire.
But some countries have been reluctant to commit troops because they fear their soldiers might get drawn into conflict if they are required to disarm Hezbollah directly.
On Monday, Hezbollah`s deputy leader rejected calls for it to disarm.
Sheikh Naeem Kassem reportedly told the Arabic TV station al-Jazeera: "I say it clearly: the resistance will continue. We must remain in a state of readiness with this enemy [Israel]."
He repeated Hezbollah`s claims of victory against Israel in the 34-day conflict.
