Hezbollah claims it downed Israeli drone that entered Lebanon airspace

Israeli authorities said an unmanned craft had crashed

Hassan Nasrallah, depicted on posters along a road in Bint Jbeil, southern Lebanon, said Hezbollah had improved its air defence capabilities. Reuters

Hezbollah said it downed an Israeli drone that violated Lebanese airspace on Monday, but Israel said one of its unmanned craft had crashed.

The drone, which came down on the outskirts of Blida village in south Lebanon, is in the possession of Hezbollah, according to a statement aired by the party's Al Manar television station.

The Israeli military said the drone had fallen in Lebanese territory during an operation near the border demarcation known as the Blue Line and that there was, "no breach of information".

The incident happened as Israel increased low-level surveillance flights over Lebanon and less than two weeks after Israel said it shot down a drone that entered its airspace from Lebanon.

The Israeli missions angered the Lebanese and evoked memories of the month-long war in 2006 that pitted Israel against Hezbollah.

Israel violates Lebanon's airspace almost daily on surveillance flights. It also carries out strikes in Syria against government forces and allied Iran-backed militias.

Hezbollah, whose air defence capabilities have long been shrouded in secrecy, has vowed to respond to Israeli attacks.

Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah's leader,  boasted last year that the oragnisation has doubled the size of its arsenal of precision-guided missiles and could strike targets anywhere in Israel.

In August, Hezbollah said it brought down an Israeli drone that crossed the UN-demarcated border between the two countries. Israel confirmed that one of its drones “crashed inside Lebanese territories”.