GENEVA, October 15. /TASS/. At least 22 people, including 12 women and two children, were killed as a result of an Israeli airstrike on a residential house in the town of Aitou in northern Lebanon, spokesman for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Jeremy Lawrence told a briefing in Geneva.

He noted that OHCHR was aware of reports of deaths in Aitou. "What we are hearing is that amongst the 22 people killed were 12 women and two children," the spokesperson said. A four-storey apartment building in Aitou was bombed, Lawrence emphasized.

In this regard, OHCHR, it noted, has "real concerns with respect to IHL (International Humanitarian Law)." The OHCHR Office in Lebanon has called for a prompt and independent investigation into the incident.

Israel has been delivering massive airstrikes on Hezbollah military targets in Lebanon since September 23, when it launched Operation Northern Arrows. Israel’s declared goal is to create safe conditions in the country’s northern areas so that tens of thousands of local residents could return to their homes. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was reportedly killed in Israel’s strike on Beirut on September 27. In the early hours on October 1, Israel announced the launch of a ground operation in Lebanon’s border areas.