"But there are many Israelis who want to try to work with the Palestinian people so that they can share peace."

Palestinians welcomed O'Rourke with open arms into their homes and shared with him what little that they had, he said.

For an American traveling in the region, the dangers are high.

"People were probably suspicious of (O'Rourke) at first," said Apler Dede, temporary faculty in the political science department. "People perceive (Americans in the region) as a negative thing - they think it could be part of a larger conspiracy theory. People in the region are usually suspicious of people from the west, especially Americans."

Many in the region learn about America from films and news reports, so meeting an American often creates a stereotype conflict, Dede said.

"I was trying to understand the United States from Hollywood movies," said Dede, who is from Turkey. "I never had a chance to understand America - imagine what it's like to try to understand the U.S. from seeing movies."

In order to blend in with his surroundings, O'Rourke said he made up various stories to tell the IDF if they became suspicious of his activity in the region.

"(The IDF) don't like internationals traveling around the West Bank," he said.

Plans were changed abruptly when the site where O'Rourke was building a home came under fire from the IDF, who exchanged rubber bullets and tear gas with locals.

"The first house we were trying to build was in a southern part of Anata," O'Rourke said. "We had to stop building because it was being built in an area where the construction of the Israeli West Bank barrier was going up."

Building the house proved to be the most difficult task for O'Rourke, he said.

"We had no power tools," O'Rourke said. "The house was made mostly out of cement, so we had to mix most of it by hand."

Three weeks in a war zone hasn't deterred O'Rourke's interest in the area, he said.

"I am planning to go back next summer and spend the entire summer there working with some kids at the Hope Flowers Al-Amal School, which is a school that teaches nonviolence in their regular curriculum," he said.

Despite the dangers present in the region, O'Rourke said people should remain interested in helping.

"(They shouldn't) let fear sway their decisions," O'Rourke said. "Don't let the fear of not getting enough money, or being hurt, or detained, or kidnaped influence your decision, but rather, the simple will to help people."

Haneya had planned to hand the letter of resignation to President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday evening, but Abbas, who was to meet visiting French foreign minister at his Ramallah headquarters could only travel to the Gaza Strip on Friday, said the sources on condition of anonymity.

The move was part of preparations for forming a new Palestinian government with the participation of Fatah, paving the way for the resumption of badly-needed Western aid.

Many world donor countries have cut off direct aid to the Palestinians since Hamas came to power after its victory in the January elections.

Though many portfolios would be re-designated, Abbas confirmed on Wednesday that Haneya is the one that would be asked to form and lead the 11th Palestinian coalition government.

In his decision to free the politicians, Atzmon questioned the timing of the arrests, noting that the men were permitted to run for office and serve in the Palestinian government for months before their detentions.

"There is evidence upon which the charges are apparently based," he said, but added that the officials should be released until their trial begins. Only then would it be possible to request their detention until the end of legal proceedings, he said.

The 20 were arrested in the wake of the abduction of Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit by Palestinian militants on June 25.

The court on Thursday rejected the arguments of the detainees' lawyers, who said they enjoyed diplomatic immunity and that the arrests contravened the Geneva Convention.

In meetings with Amnesty International, Hezbollah had argued that its rocket attacks on northern Israel were a reprisal for Israeli attacks on civilians in Lebanon and were aimed at stopping such attacks.

In its report Amnesty rejects the Hezbollah claim by pointing out that international law forbids the targeting of civilians and reprisals.

During the month-long conflict, Hezbollah fired nearly 4,000 rockets into northern Israel, killing 43 civilians, seriously injuring 33 others and forcing hundreds of thousands of civilians to take refuge in shelters or flee, the report said.

Approximately a quarter of all rockets were fired directly into urban areas, including rockets packed with thousands of metal ball bearings.

"The scale of Hezbollah's attacks on Israeli cities, towns and villages, the indiscriminate nature of the weapons used, and statements from the leadership confirming their intent to target civilians make it all too clear that Hezbollah violated the laws of war," Amnesty International's Secretary General Irene Khan said in a comment on the report.

"The fact that Israel has also committed serious violations in no way justifies violations by Hezbollah. Civilians must not be made to pay the price for unlawful conduct on either side."

Combined with its earlier publication on Israel's targeting of Lebanese civilian infrastructure, the latest findings underlined the urgent need for the United Nations to establish a full and impartial investigation into violations committed by both sides.

The Amnesty report on Israel was severely criticized in Israel and by Jewish groups abroad, who accused the human rights organization of bias. These same critics maintain that Amnesty should have waited and issued the two reports simultaneously.

Haaretz learned that the decision on the timing of the reports' release was made in London, which did not please officials of Amnesty at the Israel office.

The director of the Amnesty International office in Tel Aviv, Amnon Yarden, will present Haifa Mayor Yona Yahav with a copy of the report Thursday.

UN peacekeepers inspected the disputed barrier - two coils of barbed-wire that Lebanon says were unfurled some 15 meters inside Lebanon, just across from the Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona.

Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Saniora protested the encroachment, and a spokesman for the UN mission in Lebanon said that the peacekeeping force had asked Israel's army to remove the barrier.

But the Israeli military said that it was repairing the fence along the route set down in a 2000 UN resolution. The fence is not inside Lebanese territory, it said, so there is no reason to remove it.

At the border, a new dirt track controlled by Israelis could be seen running between the tall border fence and the barbed-wire coils laid inside a field.

"The Israeli soldiers moved in and began unfurling their wire in the middle of my land," said farmer Mahmoud Sheikh. He said that the incident occurred three days ago, and that the troops had waved him off as he tried to intervene.

New barriers have been put up in several places, including the Khiam plain and the town of Ghajar. The barriers enclose an area about 15 meters deep and three kilometers wide, Lebanese Army and UN officials said.

Some 10 kilometers away from the contested stretch of fence, Lebanese soldiers in a long column of old jeeps and armored vehicles took control of a 200-square-kilometer zone around Houla, near the border, for the first time in decades.

Children clapped their hands, women threw rice and men waved yellow Hezbollah baseball caps to greet some 300 soldiers. A Lebanese officer commanding the deployment said that because the army has not been in the zone for decades, "we've been studying maps and aerial photographs to find our way."

"We're overjoyed to have them all here," said the mayor of Minni Hayam, Salah Jaber. "Finally, the sovereignty of Lebanon is restored here."

Also yesterday, some 175 French soldiers landed in Lebanon, bringing the number of UN peacekeepers to nearly 3,750.

Under the UN resolution that ended the conflict, 15,000 UN peacekeepers are to secure a buffer zone with Israel in south Lebanon, supporting an equal number of Lebanese troops.

The resolution also calls for disarming Hezbollah. But most soldiers being deployed in the south are conscripts, who are deemed no match for the highly trained guerrillas, and many also say they support Hezbollah.

"Hezbollah are our brothers," said Assem Shouri, a soldier deployed in the southern town of Tibnine. "If ever there's a problem with Israel and I'm asked to disarm them, I'd leave the army and join Hezbollah."

In Berlin, Germany's cabinet approved the deployment of warships to the eastern Mediterranean as part of the peacekeeping force. Parliament, which must also approve the deployment of up to 2,400 navy personnel, is to vote on it next week.

According to Alexander Ivanko, spokesman for the UN interim force in Lebanon (Unifil), there have been more than 100 recorded ceasefire violations by Israeli forces in the last month. These have been mostly over-flights and incursions by tanks, troops and bulldozers. Mr Ivanko said that 24 Lebanese civilians - including four men from Aita al-Shaab - had been detained at gunpoint by Israeli troops. All were later released.

In addition to the incursions, there have also been a number of shooting incidents - described by the residents of Aita al-Shaab as "intimidation fire".

Gunfire fears

Some locals have moved to escape the gunfire on the edge of the village, a few hundred metres from the site where two Israeli soldiers were abducted on July 12, sparking a 34-day conflict that left more than 1,000 Lebanese civilians dead. Wafa Srour, 21, said: "The bullets were coming very close to the house, so we moved to a friend's house close to the centre of town."

Last night the Israel Defence Force said it had kept to the requirements of UN resolution 1701, which ended the conflict, and 80% of territory had been "transferred" to Unifil. Israel reserved the right to continue "intelligence surveillance" while the two captured Israeli soldiers were still held, it said.

Like the Israeli forces, Hizbullah has not withdrawn from the battlefield. Within minutes of the four Aita al-Shaab residents being held by Israeli troops last Friday men from the village took up position in anticipation of a possible battle. They wore Hizbullah's trademark black T-shirts and combat trousers.

But the villagers say local fighters will not violate the ceasefire. "Sayyed Hassan [Nasrallah, the Hizbullah leader] has said that is what is best for Lebanon, so that is what they'll do," said Fatmeh Srour, 19, Wafa's sister. She said many in the village believed Israel was trying to provoke them. "They were trying to take us back into war by shooting at everything, but we remained steadfast."

The Srour sisters lost their brother, Mohammed, in the fighting. "He was a brave warrior; he fought hard in two battles before he was martyred," Fatmeh said. Her husband, a Hizbullah fighter, was on patrol in the next village. "Every time we see the boys holding their heads high, it makes us feel proud."

Many villagers lost relatives in the conflict, either Hizbullah fighters or civilians killed by missiles. Many houses have been shredded beyond recognition and conditions are difficult, with many villagers suffering infections from contaminated well water. Aid workers have set up a clinic and are working with Hizbullah officials to distribute supplies. A small medical camp has been set up by the Iranian Red Crescent.

As well as bringing tinned food in the days after the ceasefire the UN delivered tents, but most families prefer to live in the remains of their homes. According to the UN, the Italian contingent has carried out some limited de-mining operations and the French have been involved in engineering, but now they remain in their bases citing "logistical problems".

Compensation

Most residents are too loyal to criticise Hizbullah, but one family said it felt abandoned by the party, which runs the local council. The family got the standard $12,000 (£6,400) compensation from Hizbullah for its destroyed house but was then told it was on its own. "What are we supposed to do when winter comes and we do not yet have a new house?" asked the grandmother.

Few in the village are reassured by the Lebanese army's deployment. Kalamia, 59, recalled a previous visit. "I remember back in the 70s, the last time the Lebanese army was here," she said. "There were about seven soldiers stationed here and when the Israelis came over the hill and down into the village not a single soldier even raised his gun. They don't have the weapons to defend us, it's all for the cameras."

Talk of the UN met with a similar lack of enthusiasm. "We don't know them and they don't know us - so how can their be any real trust between us? They will not stand against the Israelis; they are Europeans that are coming now," said Kalamia. Villagers had seen UN troops roll through the village without stopping a few days earlier. "They have come and gone before, it's the same old story. Whether they're here or not, it doesn't make any difference to us," said Fatmeh Srour.

In neighbouring Rmeish, the mood is different, with young people strolling through relatively unscathed streets. A largely Christian village, it escaped much of the fighting and its people are happy to see the Lebanese army and UN forces providing extra protection.

Nearby Bint Jbeil, where the bloodiest battles were fought, is the first of four southern towns to benefit from a planned $300,000 reconstruction project funded by Qatar. The Lebanese army deployed to the town nearly two weeks ago, but the residents still complain of Israeli harassment. "It's not a ceasefire yet because the Israelis have not stopped their firing," said Ibrahim Bassi. "The big test for the Unifil is whether they can stop the violations."

Back in Aita al-Shaab, a man recited the opening verse of the Qur'an over a freshly laid gravestone. As the sun slipped over the hill into Israel, an explosion rang out across the lush green hills of the border.

You are saying a very serious thing. Thirty-three soldiers were killed in that operation. Were they killed to achieve a spin?

"Yes. And that is why people have to resign. For that you don't even need a commission of inquiry. Whoever made that decision has to assume responsibility and resign."

Does the prime minister have to resign?

"Yes. He can't say he didn't know. He can't say that. Even if he was not an army person in the past and was not prime minister or defense minister, he knows how one goes to war. This is not the way to go to war. And he knows how a war is managed. This is not the way a war is managed. Going to war was scandalous, and he is directly responsible for that. The war's management was a failure, and he is responsible for that. The final operation was particularly problematic, and he was directly involved in that. He was warned and did not heed the warnings. Therefore, he must resign."

And the chief of staff?

"The chief of staff failed in the management of the war. He gave the political echelon the feeling that he had the capability, which in practice he did not have, to bring about a political achievement by means of an extremely aggressive military operation.

"He entered the war without defining it as a war, and maybe without understanding that it was a war. He did not understand the implications of the measures he himself adopted. He did not mobilize the reserves in time, and did not open the emergency depots in time, and did not activate the high-command base.

"He managed the war from his office. He imposed missions such as Bint Jbail without any discussion and without consulting with the command about the consequences and implications. He created lack of clarity that rattled the forces in the field, caused a loss of trust and generated chaos. He did not give the commanders in the North backing. He did not build a structure that would help him overcome his weakness in the land sphere. He managed the campaign arrogantly and shallowly."

Must the chief of staff resign?

"Yes. He should have resigned immediately after the conclusion of the campaign."

And the defense minister?

"The defense minister should be replaced. There is a certain justice to what he says about being new and not having time to learn and not even hearing that there were rockets in Lebanon. But the responsibility is on his shoulders in his very agreement to take the job. Both he and the person who appointed him are responsible for appointing an inexperienced person to a sensitive post, without taking into account that within a short time he would have to manage a crisis. There is no doubt the leadership team that was created here was perceived by Hezbollah as weak and inexperienced. Nasrallah may have been taken by surprise at the aggressive reaction by the prime minister, defense minister and chief of staff, but in the end he was right in his assessment that this team was incapable of managing a war properly."

Ya'alon still denied any intention of entering politics, but his denial sounds fainter than before. "Today I don't think politics is my way to exert influence," he said.

"The police also questioned seven women who have been employees of Katsav in the course of his various public duties, but some of this testimony cannot be used in evidence against him," he added.

Rosenfeld said Katsav would be questioned again later on a date yet to be set.

Israeli media on Wednesday night quoted a presidency official who did not wish to be named as saying Katsav completely rejected the allegations against him.

"It is a baseless plot hatched a long time ago by a group of criminals who want to strip him of his post," the official was quoted as saying.

"He will continue to fight these false allegations until the truth is known and justice is done," the official was reported as adding.

The 61-year-old Iranian-born head of state was last week grilled on two consecutive days by police, following two earlier sessions in August.

The married father of five faces allegations that he forced at least two women employees to have sex with him by abusing his position of authority and suspicions that his office granted illegal pardons to prisoners.

Katsav, who could yet be forced to resign, has denied the allegations against him and rejected calls that he step down pending the investigation.

A parliamentary committee Wednesday agreed to accept a request from Katsav that his duties be suspended for a day on Thursday so that he would not have to preside over the swearing-in of nation's first female head of the supreme court.

"In this way, President Katsav wants to avoid any controversy that his presence can create in current circumstances," his spokeswoman Hagit Cohen said on Sunday.

The Katsav case is the latest blow to hit Israel's leadership, with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's government steering its way through public anger over failings of its 34-day war against Hezbollah in Lebanon.