IDF Seizes Beaufort Ridge, Captures Zawtar Villages After Crossing Litani River

Israeli forces seized the strategic Beaufort Ridge and captured villages on the Beaufort Ridge after crossing the Litani River, with Col. Netanel Shamaka telling Ynetnews that “From the moment we crossed the Litani until the capture of the villages on the Beaufort Ridge, it took us six hours.”

Shamaka said troops entered the villages of Zawtar al-Sharqiyah and Zawtar al-Gharbiyah in southern Lebanon, where soldiers found hundreds of weapons and other military items inside homes.

Al Jazeera

Hezbollah drones caused all of the Givati Brigade’s losses over the past week, and Shamaka said he had “the privilege of commanding the best people in Israel” as he named Capt. Dr. Ori Yosef Silvester, Michael Tyukin, and Sgt. Rotem Yanai.

The IDF said the operation aimed to dismantle entrenched terrorist infrastructure and eliminate Hezbollah cells, with the Times of Israël describing the goal as destroying Hezbollah’s infrastructure and eliminating the terrorists in the Beaufort Ridge and Wadi Saluki region.

JNS.org framed the capture as a shift in the operational balance of power, with Lt. Col. (res.) Tal Beeri saying the physical presence on the high ground “places them in a position to actively disrupt the movement of enemy assets.”

As fighting continued despite a ceasefire announced by the United States, Shamaka told Ynetnews there had been “no change,” saying “We are operating north of the Litani” and that “Just today, the reconnaissance unit encountered a terrorist.”

He also said the IDF would keep operating surgically, adding “I cannot harm all Lebanese civilians,” while the Times of Israël reported that the IDF was prepared to extend the offensive if necessary.

Al Jazeera

In a separate warning about the drone threat, former Menashe Brigade commander Col. (ret.) Oren Zini told Ynet News that “There is no doubt about it” that Hezbollah’s FPV drone threat would reach the center of Israel.

Zini argued that “the only solution: presence—our forces inside the territory,” and he said the price for the current challenge was “very high” as he referenced “that dear soldier last night in the Givati Brigade.”

Israel’s stated rationale for the Beaufort seizure was to protect northern Israel through a buffer zone, with Defense Minister Israel Katz telling JNS.org that “In accordance with the instruction of Prime Minister Netanyahu and my instruction, the IDF expanded the maneuver in Lebanon.”

Katz said the Beaufort Ridge was “a ridge that constitutes a strategic controlling point vital for the defense of the residents of the Galilee and for the preservation of the security of our forces,” while JNS.org added that the restored presence “severely harms Hezbollah’s activities.”

Le Monde described the capture as both a strategic asset and a historical burden, recalling that the last Israeli soldiers withdrew from Beaufort Castle in the night of May 23–24, 2000, after eighteen years of occupation.

Le Monde also said Israel intensified operations in southern Lebanon despite the ceasefire declared on April 16, and it reported that the entire region south of the Zahrani River, 40 kilometers from the border, was designated an “Active Combat Zone.”

In the same context of escalation and displacement, Boursorama reported that clashes have driven more than 1.2 million Lebanese people from their homes and that since the start of the Israeli incursion more than 3,370 people have been killed, according to the Lebanese government.