Hezbollah admits Israeli drone launch

The leader of Hezbollah has claimed responsibility for launching a drone which entered Israeli airspace earlier this week, a rare and provocative move by the Lebanese militants at a time of soaring regional tensions.

Israeli warplanes shot down the unmanned aircraft, but the infiltration marked a rare breach of Israel's airspace. Hezbollah had been the leading suspect because of its history of trying to deploy similar aircraft.

"Today we are uncovering a small part of our capabilities, and we shall keep many more hidden," Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah said in a televised address yesterday.

"It is our natural right to send other reconnaissance flights inside occupied Palestine... This is not the first time and will not be the last," he added.