Israeli representative to the UN Danny Danon warned Iran it would face consequences 'far greater than they could have ever imagined' following Tuesday's missile attacks - and hit out at those seeking to 'equate Israel' with Tehran - during a fractious emergency meeting of the Security Council on Wednesday.

"Let me be clear: Israel will defend itself. We will act. And let me assure you, the consequences Iran will face for their actions will be far greater than they could ever have imagined. Let me ask the council and the entire world. How would any of you react if faced with such an attack?" he asked.

"The time for an empty course for de-escalation is over. How can you do that? To equate Israel, a nation simply wishing to live in peace, acting in defence of its people with an aggressor bent on our destruction. It's not just wrong, it is a grotesque and immoral distortion of reality," he alleged.

Iran launched a wave of missile strikes on Israel on Tuesday, claiming they were in response to the assassinations of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah and IRGC commander Abbas Nilforoshan in Lebanon, as well as the death of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.

Iranian representative Amir Saeid Iravani reiterated that position and said the strikes were a "necessity to restore balance and deterrence".

"Israelis must understand that each act of aggression it makes is not unpunished and will be met with consequences," he said.

Russia's Vassily Nebenzia commented on Israeli foreign minister Israel Katz's claim that the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres was now 'barred' from Israel, after claiming that he did not 'unequivocally' condemn Iran.

Today's news that the Secretary-General is a persona non grata in Israel is unheard of and is a slap, not just on the UN but on all of us, we call on the members of the Security Council, and the UN to react to this outrageous act," he said.

Guterres had issued a statement following Iran's wave of strikes on Israel and reiterated his condemnation during the meeting, saying it 'should've been obvious'.

Nebenzia also hit out at Israel's latest incursion into Lebanon and accused the US of "paralyzing the deliberations of Security Council".

"As a result, the new victim of the Israeli military machine is Lebanon," he said. Russia has repeatedly condemned the US for vetoing a number of UNSC resolutions on Israel, which Washington has previously said would impact on peace talks.

On Tuesday, Israel began a 'limited and targeted' ground incursion into Lebanon, following a week-long campaign of airstrikes in the south of the country. Lebanon's own Al-Sayyid Hadi Hashim said that the "policy of putting our heads in the sand and facing a confrontation with Israel is no longer useful" and repeated his country's backing for a US-French peace initiative, which Israel has rejected.

"South and the southern suburbs of Beirut are sleeping on the streets. Mothers are carrying their children fleeing the horrors of the destructive strikes and missiles used against civilians," he claimed. Israel has stated it is targeting Hezbollah locations and infrastructure.

Meanwhile, Washington's Linda Thomas-Greenfield called the Iranian strikes a 'significant escalation' and claimed that by "close co-ordination between the United States and Israel, Iran failed to achieve its objectives".

"I can think of no starker example of state support of terrorism than launching ballistic missiles to avenge the death of a terrorist leader," she added, referring to Nasrallah. "President Biden emphasised following yesterday's attack, the United States is fully, fully, fully supportive of Israel."