00:06A fortress built by Crusaders 900 years ago, perched above a cliff above the Latani River,
00:13and as of this weekend, back in Israeli hands for the first time in 26 years.
00:19After days of fierce fighting around the Nabatea area, Israeli forces have seized control of
00:26Beaufort Castle and the surrounding ridge, roughly nine miles inside Lebanese territory.
00:32The IDF says the operation is focused on establishing control of the Beaufort Bridge
00:37and the Wadi al-Saluki Valley, dismantling what it describes as Hezbollah command infrastructure
00:43that was used to coordinate attacks on Israeli civilians.
00:48Hezbollah didn't give it up quietly. They claim to have destroyed an Israeli tank near the castle
00:54during the battle. Lebanese state media reported intense bombardment in the surrounding area
00:59for days before the flag changed hands. Here's what makes Beaufort different.
01:05From just another hilltop. Built by Crusader knights in the 12th century, it sits on a high cliff with
01:12commanding views over the Latani River Valley and deep into southern Lebanon. Whoever holds it,
01:18sees everything, controls everything in range. Israel held it before, for 18 years, from 1982 to 2000.
01:27That occupation ended with a withdrawal that was widely seen in Lebanon as a Hezbollah victory.
01:34Now, Israel is back. Beaufort isn't an isolated move. It's the sharp end of a much larger Israeli advance.
01:42Netanyahu confirmed last Friday that Israeli forces have now crossed the Latani River,
01:48the line that ceasefire agreements have long treated as the boundary Hezbollah must stay behind.
01:54Israel has issued evacuation orders for villages north of the river and is pushing deeper into
01:59territory it hasn't operated in since 2006. Defense Minister Kotz put it bluntly.
02:05Anyone who threatens Israeli civilians will lose their strategic assets one by one.
02:12Far-right finance minister Smotrich went further, calling for permanent territorial control
02:18and threatening that for every drone fired, buildings in Beirut should fall.
02:23The gloves clearly are off.
02:25Iran is currently in fragile nuclear negotiations with the United States,
02:30and Tehran has insisted any deal must include a ceasefire in Lebanon.
02:35Israel pushing across the Latani and capturing symbolic strongholds could torpedo those talks entirely.
02:43President Trump told Netanyahu last week he supports Israel's freedom of action on all fronts,
02:49including Lebanon, essentially a green light.
02:53But a green light in Lebanon could turn the Iran talks red.
02:57One castle, one river crossing, one chain reaction.
03:02Whether this is a calculated pressure campaign or the opening move of something far larger,
03:07nobody quite knows yet.
03:09But the Latani has been crossed, the castle has fallen,
03:13and the Middle East just got a little more unpredictable.
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