Amnesty Int'l calls for Mideast weapons embargo

Human rights group Amnesty International on Wednesday called for an immediate suspension in arms sales and transfers to all combatants in the escalating Middle East conflict. In an open letter addressed to world leaders attending Wednesday's Mideast conference in Rome, Amnesty said that foreign governments should support a UN Security Council arms embargo and prevent weapons transfers to Israel and Hizbullah. Amnesty said governments should also dispatch immediate aid to civilians caught in the fray, terming the conflict a "humanitarian disaster." "Intentionally directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects and launching indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks are war crimes," the letter stated.