The Lebanese army will take appropriate and necessary measures to sustain stability and calm in southern Lebanon, said Lebanese caretaker Defense Minister Maurice Slim on Friday.

"The army was and will remain keen on maintaining the highest levels of cooperation with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and sustaining stability and calm in the south," the minister said in a statement released by the National News Agency, adding that the army is ready to confront any aggression.

Slim also said the recent escalation directly threatens security and stability in the south, stressing that Lebanon is committed to UN Security Council Resolution 1701.

Also on Friday, Lebanese Foreign Affairs Minister Abdallah Bou Habib said Lebanon will submit an official complaint to the UN Security Council as Israel's attacks in southern Lebanon "constitute a flagrant violation of Lebanon's sovereignty and UN Security Council Resolution 1701."

Israel on Friday intensified airstrikes on military posts in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, in response to rockets fired from the areas at several parts in Israel.

Two Israeli women were killed in a shooting in the occupied West Bank on Friday and Israel reinforced troops near its borders after cross-frontier violence and police raids at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque raised concerns of a broadening conflict.

Though major salvoes of rockets were fired at northern and southern Israel over the past day and Israel's military replied with strikes in Lebanon and Gaza, no serious injuries were reported and neither side seemed keen to broaden the conflict.

"Nobody wants an escalation right now," an Israeli army spokesman told reporters. "Quiet will be answered with quiet, at this stage I think, at least in the coming hours."

Much hinged on Friday prayers at Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem's walled Old City, which draws large crowds and has been a flashpoint during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

(With input from agencies)