UNITED NATIONS, Aug 6: Arab diplomats at the United Nations on Sunday expressed serious reservations over the proposed US-French draft resolution and maintained that one crucial element missing in the draft was a call for an immediate end to fighting in Lebanon by Israel and Hezbollah.

“We have to end the bloodshed immediately,” said one diplomat who was in the UN Security Council chambers studying the draft submitted to the 15-member UNSC on Saturday afternoon.

“The problem with the draft resolution is that it does not set a timeframe for ending the bloodshed. The draft calls for “a cessation of hostilities” instead of an “immediate cessation of hostilities” as France advocated, and it appears to be a political triumph for Israel and its US ally, which want the onslaught on Lebanon to continue, to be able afterwards to reach a “sustainable ceasefire”. But at what cost? Every minute wasted before adopting the resolution and then enforcing it means more bloodshed and destruction” said Nouhad Mahmoud, Lebanon’s representative to the Security Council.

“It lacks a call for the withdrawal of Israeli forces who are now in Lebanon, and that’s a recipe for more confrontation,” said Nassir al-Nasser, the Ambassador of Qatar who is the Arab representative on the Council. “What about the Lebanese prisoners? We need more clarification on these points.”

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who conceded the difficulties with the proposed draft, said at a press briefing in Crawford, Texas: “We’re trying to deal with a problem that has been festering and brewing in Lebanon now for years and years and years”. “And so it’s not going to be solved by one resolution in the Security Council.”

“These things take a while to wind down,” she said. “It is certainly not the case that probably all violence is going to stop ... I can’t say that you should rule out that there could be skirmishes of some kind for some time to come.”

In Lebanon, speaker of Lebanon’s Assembly, who has been negotiating on behalf of Hezbollah, rejected the US-French draft UN resolution on Sunday because it did not include the government’s plan for ending the fighting.

Nabih Berri said Lebanon would not accept any terms that did not include a government plan calling for an immediate ceasefire and withdrawal of Israeli troops.

“Lebanon, all of Lebanon, rejects any talks or any draft resolution that does not include the seven-point government framework,” Mr Berri said at a news conference in Beirut.

Prime Minister Fuad Saniora had first offered the plan, later adopted by his cabinet, during the Rome crisis summit July 26.

The seven-point proposal calls for a mutual release of prisoners held by Israeli and Hezbollah and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon. It foresees the Lebanese government taking control of southern Lebanon with the help of an international force.

The US-French proposal, expected to go to the floor of the UN Security Council early this week, calls for Hezbollah to stop all military operations and for Israel to stop its offensive drive against Lebanon. The proposal would allow Israel to strike back if Hezbollah were to break a ceasefire.

The draft does not require an immediate Israeli withdrawal to its side of the common border.

“We always spoke about an immediate ceasefire,” Mr Berri said in fiery remarks before opening the floor to questions.