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Sat 07 Jul 2006Rice rules out ceasefire call ahead of visit to regionUS: US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice begins a visit to the Middle East tomorrow, promising to seek a negotiated solution to the conflict in Lebanon but rejecting calls for an immediate ceasefire.Dr Rice announced her long-awaited trip to the region as the United Nations Security Council ended two days of discussions on the escalating crisis in Lebanon that saw the US and Britain isolated in their opposition to a ceasefire.