— Israeli naval vessels shelled the terrorist-held ports of Tyre and Sidon in south Lebanon last night while Israeli frogmen blew up a vessel in Tyre by planting explosives on its underwater hull. According to reports from Beirut, the bombardment lasted a half hour. Israeli forces returned safely to their bases without casualties, a military spokesman said.
Premier Menachem Begin announced, meanwhile, that he and Maj. Saod Haddad have reached a firm agreement that Haddad’s Christion forces in south Lebanon will avoid clashes in the future with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and will try not to injure civilians in its attacks on Palestinian terrorists. Haddad, discharged today from a Haifa hospital after treatment for exhaustion, met with Begin at the Defense Ministry here.
The Premier told reporters afterwards, “It was agreed between us — and I want to stress the words ‘agreed between us’ — that there won’t be any clashes with UNIFIL and that permanent efforts will be made to avoid any attempts to hurt civilian populations.”
Israel has undertaken to help Lebanese civilians in the areas of fighting in south Lebanon to build bomb shelters and will also offer to assist them to repair their homes damaged in the recent shelling.
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