TEL AVIV, Israel, Aug. 9 (UPI) -- As diplomatic efforts to end the Middle East conflict ran into hurdles, Israel decided to expand ground operations deeper inside southern Lebanon.
The inner cabinet for security affairs Wednesday voted in favor of expanding military operations, authorizing troops to push to the Litani River, some 19 miles north of the border.
The operation's goal is to purge the area of Hezbollah fighters and impose a security zone to eliminate the Shiite militant group's rocket threats on northern Israel, the cabinet said.
Among the 12 ministers, nine voted in favor of the decision put forward by Defense Minister Amir Peretz, while the remaining three abstained.
Shas's Industry and Trade Minister Eli Yishai said after the meeting that some ministers had argued the military must deal more blows to Hezbollah before a Middle East cease-fire is imposed.
Yishai said the proposed new ground offensive in Lebanon was expected to take 30 days.
"The assessment is it will last 30 days. I think it is wrong to make this assessment. I think it will take a lot longer," he said, Haaretz reported.
The security cabinet met as more casualties were reported among Israeli troops locked in fierce fighting with Hezbollah gunmen in southern Lebanon.
A military source told United Press International that 12 soldiers were killed and 28 injured in "extremely fierce battles" Wednesday in the villages of Aita Shaab and Dibel.
