The Israeli army said on Tuesday that it shot down an unmanned aircraft launched by Lebanon's Hezbollah militant group into Israeli airspace.

In a statement, the Israeli military said soldiers had monitored the drone "throughout the incident" before intercepting it.

The military did not elaborate on the incident but said it will "continue to operate to prevent any attempt to violate Israeli sovereignty."

Hezbollah has yet to comment on the alleged incident.

Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah fought a deadly war in 2006 which ended with a fragile truce.

Israel estimates that Hezbollah holds an arsenal of some 150,000 rockets and missiles capable of striking anywhere in Israel.