MARJAYOUN, Aug 10: Hezbollah guerrillas fought Israeli troops who seized a key town in south-eastern Lebanon on Thursday, and France said a breakthrough could come soon in diplomatic efforts to end the four-week-old war.

Israel said plans for a deeper ground assault into southern Lebanon were on hold to give diplomacy a chance.

“Things are moving in New York today. I hope they move even more quickly and in the hours to come,” French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazyhe told reporters. “We expect, from one moment to the next, an accord in New York.”

Hezbollah fired nearly 70 rockets into Israel, killing a woman and a toddler in an Israeli Arab village. The army said an Israeli soldier was killed by an anti-tank missile in fighting in southern Lebanon.

Israeli forces headed towards the south-eastern town of Khiam under cover of heavy artillery shelling and air strikes, residents said. Infantry moved through the Christian towns of Marjayoun and Qlaiah overnight and imposed a curfew.

The Israeli infantry advance towards Khiam was followed by tanks that drew intense Hezbollah fire. “I can see two tanks burning some 500 metres from Marjayoun,” one resident said.

A third tank arrived later and removed several casualties, he said, adding that Hezbollah fighters were raining rocket and mortar fire on the Israeli force between Marjayoun and Khiam.

The fighting intensified even though Israel said plans for an expanded ground offensive had been put on hold to allow more time for diplomatic efforts.

HUMANITARIAN CRISIS: The conflict has created a humanitarian crisis, especially for an estimated 10,000 people trapped in south Lebanon, where aid agencies said hospitals were running out of food, fuel and other supplies.

The UN World Food Programme urged both sides to stop fighting, saying relief efforts were now facing paralysis.

“Above all, we require a cessation of hostilities by both sides to allow humanitarian aid through,” a WFP official said.

—Reuters