UN demands halt to escalating attacks between Israeli forces and Hezbollah

Smoke rises from an Israeli airstrike on Kfar Kila, a Lebanese border village with Israel in south Lebanon (Hussein Malla/AP)

The United Nations Security Council has demanded a halt to the growing attacks between Lebanon’s Hezbollah militants and Israeli forces and warned that further escalation “carries the high risk of leading to a widespread conflict”.

The council’s 15 members unanimously approved a resolution that urges the “relevant actors” to restore “calm, restraint and stability” across the UN-drawn boundary between Israel and Lebanon.