A Brighton aid worker told last night of her rescue from bombed Lebanon as the region lurched towards all-out war.

Susannah Graham, from Rottingdean, had been in Beirut with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, working in a Palestinian refugee camp.

She had been living in the south-east of the city, near areas controlled by Hezbollah. After the attacks started she fled to a Christian village in the hills north of Beirut.

She had initially been told that because she was not a full-time UN employee she would not be eligible for evacuation but yesterday the UN bussed the aid worker and 600 colleagues out of the danger zone.

Her escape came as Israeli jets continued their six-day-long bombardment. The conflict threatened to escalate further yesterday with news that Israeli ground troops had briefly entered southern Lebanon overnight to attack Hezbollah bases on the border.

Ms Graham, 32, a former lawyer who was on a UN internship, was taken to the border yesterday morning in a convoy of ten buses containing non-essential UN staff and their families. Speaking to The Argus as she waited to cross the border into Syria, she said: "It is chaos here. It's very, very hot and there are a lot of desperate people just waiting to cross the border. We have another two or three hour wait then a ten to 12-hour drive to Amman in Jordan. We've a long journey ahead but feel so relieved and lucky that we can get out.

"The last few days have been pretty scary."

Ms Graham left her apartment in central Beirut soon after the bombing started, travelling north to the mountains to stay with friends.

She said: "There was a real sense of relief leaving Beirut. Like us, most people were heading up to the mountains. Things were much calmer there and I felt relatively safe but we have just heard that they've bombed a power station on the other side of the valley from were we were and now the people I was staying with have no electricity.

"We heard a lot of bombs last night and sonic booms as planes broke the sound barrier. You just don't know whether it's shelling or bombing or the sonic boom from military jets.

"The bombing has been relentless. From where we were you could see the smoke billowing into the air at night and the planes flying overhead.

"You could tell where the explosions were from the smoke. We saw smoke pouring from the fuel tanks at the airport."

Ms Graham suggested countries with influence over Israel had not done enough to try to force a ceasefire, adding: "I just wish those people that could exert pressure on Israel and haven't could stay here for a night and see what it's like - such as Tony Blair and his family.

"The Israelis say they are just focusing on specific areas but that's not true. They're targeting the infrastructure.

"We heard they had bombed a refuge and killed about 30 people. The area I was working in, in the southern suburbs, has been very badly damaged. The infrastructure has gone, the hospital's been attacked, civilians have been killed. They are devastating this country. It's very harrowing."

Ms Graham travelled to Beirut two and half months ago to gain experience in human rights. She plans to work in the Middle East.

She said: "This hasn't put me off. It has confirmed it's what I want to do. It has been a real eye-opener. Israel is getting away with incredible human rights infringements. I was hoping to come back here to work but I'm not sure I'll be able to do that now.

"This was an amazing place up to a week ago. It was very trendy and fun with great shops and fantastic bars and restaurants.

"There were festivals happening all the time and a lot of tourists. Now this place and its wonderful people have been completely devastated. It is just horrific.

"I feel very lucky to be on this UN evacuation but I've got mixed feelings because you don't want all the internationals to leave. I have a lot of friends here.

"You feel you are leaving the Lebanese to be on the receiving end of this. There's been a lot of coverage about Britons being evacuated but I just hope the attention does not stop when we leave."

Ms Graham's family have booked her on a flight from Amman to Heathrow today.

Her sister Cindy Kay, from Shoreham, said: "I could hear the bombs in the background when we were on the phone. Watching it on television just makes it worse. You feel helpless because you can't do anything.

"We're relieved she's coming home but feel desperately sorry for the Lebanese people. The bombing appears to be indiscriminate. It is just atrocious."

The international airport in Beirut has been closed and all ports sealed off by an Israeli naval blockade.