CAIRO, 14 August 2006 — Iran and Egypt called yesterday for a UN-backed truce between Israel and Hezbollah to be respected, hours before the cease-fire agreement secured by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan was to come into effect.

Iran and Syria also expressed their support for Beirut’s approval of the UN Security Council resolution passed Friday which called for an end to hostilities.

“We appeal to the parties to respect it (the truce), as we call on the international community to exercise pressure to this end,” Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit said after talks with his Iranian counterpart.

The declaration came after a three-hour meeting in the Egyptian port city of Alexandria with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki.

Mottaki told journalists that Iran respected the Lebanese government’s decision on Saturday to approve UN Resolution 1701 that calls for both sides to end hostilities and for the deployment of UN and Lebanese forces in the south of the country.

“Hezbollah is part of the Lebanese government... and we have supported and continue to support decisions taken unanimously in Lebanon, which must be respected by everyone,” Mottaki said.

Syria also weighed in, saying it supported Lebanon’s approval of the UN text as well as Beirut’s reservations on the deal, official media said.

“Syria supports Lebanon’s unanimous decision as well as official Lebanese reservations about UN Security Council Resolution 1701,” an anonymous Syrian official was quoted as saying by the official SANA news agency.

An official Lebanese source said Saturday that the “unanimous reservations... came because the resolution did not condemn large-scale Israeli destruction in Lebanon.” “It was also vague about the issues” of the Lebanese prisoners in Israeli jails and the Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms, a border area seized by Israel from Syria and now claimed by Lebanon with Damascus’ approval, he said.

Over a month of fighting has left more than 1,100 Lebanese and 150 Israelis dead and Lebanon’s infrastructure in tatters.

Annan said that both sides had agreed to end hostilities in keeping with Resolution 1701 at 0500 GMT Monday.

Relief agencies sent convoys toward southern Lebanon yesterday, hoping the planned truce would mean rapid improvement in the humanitarian crisis there. Frustrated by heavy fighting and a ban on movement imposed by Israel’s army, aid workers say they have been unable to bring food, water and medicine to an estimated 100,000 people trapped south of Lebanon’s Litani River.

But they said they could reach the area on short notice if the truce took effect as planned. “We expected better access immediately after the resolution, so we are a bit frustrated, but we expect the access to be much better after the cease-fire,” said UN spokesman Khaled Mansour.

“I would expect we would be able to run convoys south of the Litani as of tomorrow (if it takes hold).” The UN’s World Food Program said it sent two convoys to the southern city of Sidon and one should proceed today to Tyre.