UN ceasefire bid
The US and France have agreed on a draft Security Council resolution seeking a full halt to fighting in Lebanon.
The agreement ends a three-week impasse caused partly by America's refusal to press Israel to end its offensive against Hezbollah.
The resolution charts a path toward a lasting peace with a cease-fire monitored by international troops.
If passed, it would be the most significant international response to the crisis and raise hopes of ending combat that has killed at least 600 and left Lebanon in tatters.
The resolution must now go before the full 15-nation Security Council and gain Israeli and Lebanese acceptance.
Initial reaction suggests a rough passage.
An Israeli official called it an "important development", but said the offensive would continue for now.
Lebanon said it xt falls short of what it sees as necessary to halt the 26-day conflict that has killed at least 800 people.
Hezbollah warned that it won't accept the resolution unless Israel withdraws from Lebanon entirely.
The text ignored three Lebanese demands: setting a timetable for an Israeli withdrawal from the south, lifting Israel's full blockade of Lebanon and putting the disputed Shebaa Farms area under UN control.
President Bush is "happy with the progress being made", but knows securing a cease-fire will not be easy, said White House press secretary Tony Snow, who was with the president at his private ranch in Crawford, Texas.
"I don't think he has any delusions about what lies ahead."
British Prime Minister Tony Blair praised the resolution as "an important first step in bringing this tragic crisis to an end".
"The priority now is to get the resolution adopted as soon as possible, and then to work for a permanent cease-fire and achieve the conditions in Lebanon and Israel which will prevent a recurrence," Blair said.
The Security Council convened later to discuss the draft.
Diplomats said it was likely to be adopted early next week at a meeting attended by the foreign ministers of the 15 council members.
The resolution's central demand was for "a full cessation of hostilities based upon, in particular, the immediate cessation by Hezbollah of all attacks and the immediate cessation by Israel of all offensive military operations".
The document then charted a detailed path for the two sides to follow to achieve a lasting peace. It envisioned a second resolution in a week or two that would authorise an international military force for the Israel-Lebanon frontier.
Among those steps would be the creation of a large buffer zone in southern Lebanon free of both Israeli troops and Hezbollah militants, monitored by the Lebanese army and international peacekeepers.
The draft also called for Hezbollah to be disarmed and for Lebanon's borders to be solidified, especially in the disputed Shebaa Farms area, occupied by Israel since 1967.
Another element was an arms embargo that would block any entity in Lebanon except the national government from obtaining weapons from abroad.
That was aimed at blocking the sale or supply of arms to Hezbollah from Iran and Syria, which are believed to be the militia's main backers.
The resolution would put significant pressure on Lebanon's government, which ceded control of the south to Hezbollah.
"This is not a resolution that provides the comprehensive solution," said US Ambassador John Bolton said.
"I'm sure there are aspects of it that are displeasing to almost everyone, but the point is this is a way to get started and that's what we hope to do."
Russia and China say it would have to be accepted by Israel and Lebanon to achieve any success.
But the two key permanent members of the UN Security Council indicated general support for the text.