Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged Israel orchestrated the attack, saying it was carried out despite political 'opposition.'

Israel has for the first time confirmed that it was behind the operation in September to detonate hundreds of pagers used by Hezbollah in Lebanon.

In September, thousands of walkie-talkies and pagers exploded across Lebanon and parts of Syria, killing 39 people and injuring thousands. View on euronews

Benjamin Netanyahu told his Cabinet at the weekend that he had approved the attack on Hezbollah's communications devices in September. It is considered the first explicit Israeli claim of responsibility.

Both villages are in the Mount Lebanon region and outside areas where the armed group Hezbollah has a strong presence. The Israeli military said it was looking into the strikes, which came after it hit what it said were a number of Hezbollah targets in Beirut’s southern suburbs.