Israel Captures Beaufort Castle and Pushes North of the Litani in Lebanon

Israeli forces captured Beaufort Castle, a medieval fortress in southern Lebanon, and raised a flag over a position the army held during its earlier occupation from 1982 to 2000. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the seizure a "dramatic shift" in the campaign against Hezbollah and ordered troops to deepen and expand control of former Hezbollah areas.

The advance carried Israeli forces past the Litani River, which Al Jazeera describes as an effective extension of military control northward toward the Zahrani. The push breaches the line set by an April ceasefire and comes as the two governments hold direct talks in Washington, combining escalation on the ground with diplomacy abroad.

Reactions divided sharply. The New York Times reported that the castle's capture revived bitter memories in both countries of the long occupation, while France condemned the operation and called for a UN Security Council meeting. Israeli commentators themselves question the gain, arguing it is a tactical success that does not resolve the strategic problem of either holding the ground or returning it to Hezbollah fire.

The fighting connects directly to the Iran negotiations. In the same week that Washington is brokering a Hormuz framework, its closest regional ally is widening a ground war, a tension that complicates any claim that the region is moving toward de-escalation.