Israel has confirmed its warplanes have carried ou

Israel has confirmed its warplanes have carried out an air strike into Syria. Unnamed Israeli officials said the target was a shipment of missiles believed to have been bound for Hezbollah militants in neighbouring Lebanon.

Previous reports that planes had struck a Syrian chemical weapons factory have been denied.

The strike took place on Friday but was apparently launched from Lebanese airspace.

And there have been more reports of the shelling of civilian targets by Syrian government forces with more unverified footage said to show the aftermath of one such attack.

On Saturday activists said a number of people had died in the town of Baniyas. It follows Thursday's reports of Syrian government troops storming the village of Baida killing at least 50 people.

Meanwhile President Barack Obama has ruled out sending in US troops:

"I do not foresee a scenario in which boots on the ground in Syria, American boots on the ground in Syria, would not only be good for America, but also would be good for Syria," said Obama.

The United States says it will continue sending humanitarian aid to the Syrian rebels, but not arms.

However any use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime would amount to a "game changer".