Hezbollah cripples Israeli warship

JERUSALEM, July 14 (UPI) -- Hezbollah stepped up its attacks Friday, hitting an Israeli warship and firing a barrage of rockets at navy vessels blockading Lebanon.

Four sailors were missing, the Jerusalem Post reported. The ship was set on fire by the attack and was towed to the port of Haifa.

A rocket also hit and damaged a civilian vessel.

Earlier Friday, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, secretary-general of Hezbollah, threatened Israel with all-out war after his living quarters and office in southern Beirut were gutted by an Israeli airstrike.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who reportedly supervised the attack, also vowed not to back down, YnetNews.com reported.

"At the moment the entire Arab world is watching us, and we must not show weakness," said Olmert. "This is the time for resolve."

More than 50 people have been killed by Israeli strikes in Lebanon since Wednesday, when Hezbollah fighters killed eight Israeli soldiers and kidnapped two in a cross-border raid. Israel has isolated Beirut with airstrikes on the airport and the highway to Damascus, and a naval blockade.

In addition to the soldiers and the four missing sailors, four Israeli civilians have been killed in rocket attacks.

At a special meeting of the U.N. Security Council requested by Lebanon, Special Envoy Nouhad Mahmoud asked the body to condemn Israel's "barbaric aggression," Voice of America reported. Israeli Ambassador Dan Gillerman said Lebanon has allowed Hezbollah to use the country as a base for attacks, and U.S. Ambassador John Bolton blamed Iran and Syria for their sponsorship of Hezbollah and Hamas.