Up to 10,000 Israeli Troops Push Into Lebanon

MISGAV AM, Israel, Aug. 1 — Up to 10,000 Israeli troops pushed into Lebanon on a wider front today after the Israeli cabinet decided to widen its offensive, aiming to push Hezbollah back from the border before a cease-fire is declared and a multinational force is deployed there.

Israeli troops backed by air support, tanks and armored bulldozers entered Lebanon at four different places along the border, moving up to four and a half miles inside Lebanon to engage Hezbollah fighters and destroy their outposts and infrastructure.

Red-and-white tourist buses full of soldiers who had waited for more than two weeks for orders moved into Lebanon today through corridors cleared by bulldozers, tanks and engineering units.

There were house-to-house battles with hundreds of Hezbollah fighters in Lebanese towns and villages close to the border, but the fighting has been intermittent and closely contained, partly to keep down Israeli casualties.