Israeli troops have captured Beaufort Castle in southern Lebanon, taking the 900-year-old fortress and its strategic ridge in their deepest advance into the country in more than 26 years. The hilltop position, known locally as Qalaat al-Shaqif, now sits under Israeli control beyond the Litani River.
Israel Katz said the military had seized the fortress, and images he posted, along with footage verified by Agence France-Presse, showed Israeli and Golani Brigade flags flying over the site. The castle was once used by the Israel Defense Forces as a base during Israel's occupation of southern Lebanon between 1982 and 2000, giving the latest capture a grim sense of return to a place long tied to Israeli military power.
The seizure matters because Beaufort Castle overlooks much of southern Lebanon. From that ridge, Israeli forces can watch a broad stretch of terrain and reinforce a push that, by the military's own account, has crossed the Litani River and taken positions used by Hezbollah to direct attacks and launch rockets into Israel. The IDF said it had launched an operation in the Beaufort Ridge and Wadi al-Saluki area to dismantle Hezbollah infrastructure and expand its control of the area.
That advance is unfolding in a region where the truce that officially began on 17 April has never been observed, even as both sides accuse each other daily of violating it. Stalled negotiations between the US and Iran have left a vacuum in which Israel has stepped up its operations in Lebanon, and Israeli forces now appear to be positioning for a potential encirclement of Nabatieh after moving past Zawtar al-Sharqiyah and Mayfadoun in recent days.
Lebanon's prime minister, Nawaf Salam, said on Saturday that Israel was pursuing a scorched-earth policy and collective punishment, accusing it of destroying towns and villages and forcing their inhabitants into exile. He called the situation dangerous and demanded a swift and real ceasefire, warning that the fighting was bringing neither security nor stability.
Local people were ordered to evacuate Choukine on Saturday amid fears of further military operations, underlining how quickly the front has moved beyond a single fortress. Military delegations from Israel and Lebanon held security talks in Washington on Friday, and more US-brokered negotiations were planned for next week, but no sign has emerged yet that the battlefield pressure around Beaufort Castle will ease before then.
