Israel will "expand and strengthen" its attack on Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon, the defense minister said Monday, while the army honored a 48-hour halt in aerial strikes.
Israel's top ministers will discuss expanding the army's ground operation at a meeting later Monday, while thousands of reserve soldiers train for the possibility that they will be sent into Lebanon to participate in the battle, senior defense officials said. "Israel will expand and strengthen its activities against the Hezbollah," Defense Minister Amir Peretz told Israel's parliament, while Arab lawmakers repeatedly interrupted him with calls for an immediate cease-fire.
Israel was pressured to call a 48-hour suspension of its airstrikes after nearly 60 civilians were killed in the Lebanese village of Qana on Sunday. However, the army has made clear that the cessation does not include a halt in artillery fire or limited ground operations. |