Israel captures Beaufort castle in Lebanon in its deepest incursion

1 JUNE 2026

Israeli troops have captured a strategic mountain topped with a Crusader-built castle in southern Lebanon in the deepest incursion into the country in more than a quarter-century, the military said.
The capture of Beaufort castle, near the city of Nabatiyeh, came after days of air strikes and intense fighting in nearby villages where Israeli troops fought Hezbollah members in the rugged area.
Israeli troops previously captured the castle in 1982 and held it until they withdrew from Lebanon in 2000.
The Beaufort fortress, perched high atop Lebanon’s rolling green hills and overlooking the Litani River, has been a strategic military asset for centuries.
Built as a Crusader castle around the 12th century on top of previous fortifications, it has also been used by Saladin’s Jerusalem army, Mamluks, Ottomans, the French mandate, the Palestine Liberation Organisation and the Israeli military until 2000, when it was partially restored and opened to visitors.