New Delhi, April 11 -- India on Friday expressed deep concern at the "large number of civilian casualties" in Lebanon, which has been relentlessly bombarded by Israeli forces over the past month, as New Delhi emphasised the protection of civilians and the need to respect international law and the sovereignty of states. Israeli troops invaded southern Lebanon after destroying vital infrastructure such as bridges, after Hezbollah launched rockets at Israel on March 2. The Israeli bombing campaign and invasion has killed 1,800 people and injured 5,873 in Lebanon. A deadly bombing campaign on Wednesday killed 303 people and threatened to derail a fragile truce between Iran and the US. "We are deeply concerned by reports of a large number of civilian casualties that have been reported in Lebanon," external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told a media briefing. "As a troop contributing country to the UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) that is invested in Lebanon's peace and security, the direction of events is very disturbing." Though the spokesperson didn't refer to Israel, the remarks amounted to rare criticism of Israel's actions in the region....