Heavy fighting erupted today as Israeli ground forces pushed further into Lebanon, entering another Hezbollah stronghold, and 10 Israeli soldiers were wounded, the military said.

The Iraqi Prime Minister, Nouri al-Maliki, meets Tony Blair in London today as violence in Iraq reaches a new crescendo and senior Iraqi officials say the break up of the country is inevitable.

The British Foreign Office ministe Kim Howells yesterday stood by his criticisms of the 12-day bombardment of Lebanon with a warning that Israel had to win the “political battle” as well as confronting Hizbollah militarily.