HIGHLIGHTS: Israel Seeking Protection From Prosecution For War Crimes.
Lebanon's Hizbollah Attacks Occupied Shebaa Farms Wounding Three Occupation Soldiers.
(Read photo caption within).

STORYU.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan agreed on Friday to a one-day delay in the arrival in the Middle East of a fact-finding mission into Israel's assault on the Jenin refugee camp, the United Nations said.

Palestinians have accused Israel of a massacre in the West Bank camp, saying hundreds died during fighting.

After welcoming the mission on April 19, Israel four days later requested a delay and dispatched a team of defense and foreign policy experts to New York. The Israeli team then held two days of talks with U.N. officials on Thursday and Friday in an attempt to resolve their differences.

Among Israeli's objections were that not enough military and counter-terrorism specialists were in the U.N. group, headed by former Finnish president, Martti Ahtisaari. He has assembled his team of about 20 people in Geneva and said four additional military and police advisers would be added but gave no names.

The Israelis were also concerned that their officials and soldiers would not be protected from prosecution for war crimes for any testimony they gave in the course of the mission.

BASE FOR RESISTANCE BOMBINGS?

They also wanted assurances the mission would look into use of the Jenin camp by Resistance groups as a base for bombings and would not go beyond its mandate of gathering facts about what happened in Jenin.

The statement from Sharon's office said it had information the mission's plans were incompatible with a Security Council resolution approved last Friday welcoming the mission.

After Annan agreed to the delay, the Security Council announced it supported his efforts to carry out the mission "without delay."

In Washington, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher expressed hope Israel and the United Nations would quickly resolve the matter "so that the team can go."

In addition to Ahtisaari, members of the U.N. mission include Cornelio Sommaruga, Swiss ex-president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, and Sadako Ogata of Japan, a former U.N. high commissioner for refugees.

HIZBOLLAH RENEWS BORDER ATTACKS

On another Front, Lebanon's Hezbollah Resistance group attacked Israeli positions in disputed enclave of the Chebaa Farms area on Lebanon's southern border Friday, wounding three Israeli soldiers and triggering Israeli retaliation. 

PHOTO CAPTION

Former Finnish president Martti Ahtisaari, a member of the U.N. team asked by Kofi Annan to probe allegations of a massacre in the Jenin West Bank refugee camp, prepares for the team's mission at the United Nations European headquarters in Geneva April 26, 2002. The team, which also includes Cornelio Sommaruga, former head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and Sadako Ogata, former chief of the U.N.'s refugee agency, is expected to leave on Saturday despite continued wrangling over its terms. REUTERS/Jean-Marc Ferre
- Apr 26 3:17 PM