Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has chosen to hold off on the offensive unless Hezbollah launches a major attack on Israel, a senior government official told the Associated Press. On Wednesday, Israel's security cabinet had agreed to expand the country's military ground offensive  in southern Lebanon as part of its efforts to clamp down on attacks by the Islamic extremist group.

Cabinet minister Rafi Eitan confirmed the government's decision to wait and see if the latest diplomatic push for a cease-fire would bear fruit. "There are diplomatic considerations," he told Israel Radio. "There is still a chance that an international force will arrive in the area. We have no interest in being in south Lebanon. We have an interest in peace on our borders."

Putting off a massive increase in military operations could be a result of Israeli consultations with the United States. American leaders have refrained from harsh criticism of Israel's campaign over the last month, but Washington is now in the process of raising international support for a joint UN resolution with France to call for a ceasefire.

The UN Security Council remains divided over how to end the fighting. The United States tends to agree with Israel that Israeli troops should stay in southern Lebanon until an international peacekeeping force can be deployed there. But France wants Israeli forces to leave as soon as a cease-fire is achieved.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made a phone call to Jerusalem on Wednesday during the cabinet meeting to expand the ground campaign -- after which Olmert told his ministers the offensive would be accompanied by more diplomacy.

The Israeli government's prosecution of the war is also coming under growing criticism at home. Hezbollah, which has fired over 3,000 rockets into Israel, continues to threaten both civilian and military targets. Around 170 were launched on Wednesday alone, causing many Israelis to wonder whether putting more troops on Lebanese soil will make a difference.

The wider campaign would allow Israeli forces to move 30 kilometers into Lebanon, but Hezbollah has rockets with a range that would still allow it to reach Israel beyond that limit.

Some 10,000 Israeli troops are already engaged in house-to-house fighting against Hezbollah in a narrow strip just inside Lebanon. But even within the war zone, Israeli troops have had trouble taking full control of towns and villages.

On Thursday, troops backed by tanks and armored vehicles took up positions on the outskirts of the Christian town of Marjayoun in southern Lebanon. They met no resistance there, but heavy battles were reported in Lebanese villages just across from Israel's Galilee panhandle, which has been hard-hit by rockets.

Israel hopes an expanded ground offensive will force Hezbollah guerrillas out of their strongholds across southern Lebanon. The offensive is expected to last a month and eliminate 70 to 80 percent of Hezbollah's short-range rocket launchers, but not its long-range launchers, senior military officials said.