Israeli forces have captured a strategic mountain atop a Crusader-built fortress in southern Lebanon in the country’s biggest offensive in more than a quarter century, the army said Sunday.
The capture of Beaufort Castle, near the town of Nabatiyeh, followed days of airstrikes and heavy fighting in nearby villages between Israeli troops and Hezbollah militants.
The capture marked a major advance for Israel in the latest Israel-Hezbollah war, which began on March 2, when Hezbollah fired missiles into northern Israel two days after the United States and Israel attacked its main sponsor, Iran.
Since then, Israel has launched a ground invasion, seizing dozens of Lebanese villages and towns near the border. Hezbollah has fired thousands of missiles and drones at Israeli troops in southern Lebanon and northern Israel.
The Israeli push came despite a ceasefire that has been in place since April 17 and a few days before Lebanon and Israel hold a second round of direct talks in Washington starting Tuesday.
Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a key Hezbollah ally, said he could guarantee the militant group’s commitment to a “full, complete and immediate ceasefire”.
