US welcomes Israeli, Lebanese ceasefire

The United States has welcomed the Israeli and Lebanese government's acceptance of UN Security Council resolution.

The United States has welcomed the Israeli and Lebanese government's acceptance of a UN Security Council resolution aimed at ending the month-long hostilities between Israel and the Hezbollah militia.

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"We welcome this positive step by the Israeli and Lebanese governments and we look forward to the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701," Justin Higgins, a US State Department spokesman, said.

Speaking on NBC television's "Today Show" programme on Sunday, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack described the resolution as "a good first step."

"They will have a strong mandate," McCormack said, adding however "implementation of this resolution will take some time."

The resolution calls for a full cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah to be followed by the deployment of a 15,000-strong international force in southern Lebanon.