BEIRUT — Israel’s assault on Lebanon threatens to weaken Arab moderates throughout the region, bolstering the image of Islamic fighters at a time when anger among the Arab public is running high over the “war on terror” and America’s role in Iraq.

ISRAELI AIR STRIKES killed 42 people across Lebanon on Monday, including 10 civilians hit on a southern bridge, on the sixth day of a bombardment that has wreaked the heaviest destruction in Lebanon for over 20 years.

Lebanon has accused the United States of blocking a Security Council statement calling for a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, and said the impotence of the UN’s most powerful body sent wrong signals to small countries.