Lebanon's Hezbollah on Thursday vehemently denied Israeli accusations that a huge shipment of arms seized by the Jewish state was destined for the militant group.

"Hezbollah staunchly denies any link to the weapons that the Zionist enemy has seized from the Francop ship," the group, which fought a devastating war with Israel in 2006, said in a brief statement.

"At the same time Hezbollah denounces Israel's piracy in international waters," it added.

The shipment intercepted on Wednesday was among the largest ever seized by Israel, which said the weapons were bound for Hezbollah from Iran.

The Israeli military said it had seized the 137-metre (450-foot) Antigua-flagged vessel Francop before dawn on Wednesday around 100 nautical miles from the Israeli coast.

Iran and Syria, staunch allies of Hezbollah, have both rejected Israel's accusations about the ship's destination and direction of passage.