The Christian area where we are sent has become a circus for the corporate media. It offers a panoramic view of the city. Smoke billows up from several fires started by the earlier bombing. The districts that have been attacked smoulder below us. They have been empty since the first days of the war and all but destroyed. It seems that the Israelis are making the most of the last few hours of bombing before their licence is taken away by the ceasefire. Two areas have been hit and the fires will burn for hours.

Then a massive explosion rocks the landscape to the south of us. An enormous mushroom of smoke appears visible from many miles away; the refugee camp of Naameh has been hit. One of the Arab journalists present explains that Naameh is home to around 12,000 Palistinian refugees who have lived there for many years. There is a history of tension between the mainly Sunni Palistinians and their mainly Shiite hosts so the idea that this was a strike against Hizbollah is absurd. There are however a number of Palistinian militants in the camp who are wanted by Israel. This, it seems, was a simple case of score settling by Israelis who seem to want to use every last bomb before the UN resolution goes through.

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