Siniora the man in the middle between Hezbollah and Israel

Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora evoked little sympathy from Israeli leaders when he wept on Monday over the rampant devastation caused by Israel's nearly month-old military onslaught in his country.

Mr Siniora, a former banker and finance minister who a year ago became the head of the first cabinet formed after Syria's withdrawal from the country, repeatedly wiped away tears as he described to Arab foreign ministers convening in Beirut how Israeli bombings had 'taken our country back decades'.

Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, speaking in the Knesset the following day, derided Mr Siniora, 63, for contributing to the eruption of the war by pursuing what she depicted as a weak policy of trying to persuade Hezbollah to disarm through 'national dialogue' rather than confronting the movement.

'I also saw Siniora's tears yesterday and we all cry for our dead. But this is indeed the place to tell him to dry his tears and start taking action in order to create a better future, a more normal future, first and foremost for the citizens over whom he is crying,' she said.

However, despite being in the unenviable position of being squeezed tight between Israel and Hezbollah, Mr Siniora has proven this week that he is an initiator rather than a reactor.

Hours after his tearful speech, Mr Siniora gained an unprecedented agreement by Hezbollah to his initiative to send 15,000 Lebanese army troops to stand between Israel and Hezbollah, should a ceasefire take hold and Israeli troops withdraw from the border. Israel conceded the proposal was an advance over past policy, with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert terming it 'interesting'.