Egypt Demands UN Action as Israel Seizes Iconic Lebanon Fortress
In a formal statement, Egypt's Foreign Ministry condemned what it described as Israel's "continued aggression" against Lebanon and the steady expansion of its ground operations across the country's south.
The appeal came within hours of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announcing in a recorded address that Israeli forces had seized control of the strategically vital Beaufort Castle — known in Arabic as Qalaat al-Shaqif — marking the deepest Israeli ground incursion into southern Lebanon in over two decades.
Cairo condemned the widening ground offensive as "a complete violation of Lebanese sovereignty" and "a blatant act of aggression that reveals premeditated Israeli intentions to impose a new military reality on the ground." It reiterated its "categorical rejection of any infringement on Lebanese territory" and reaffirmed unwavering support for Lebanon's unity, institutions, and territorial integrity.
The Egyptian ministry demanded "an immediate and complete Israeli withdrawal from all Lebanese territory," cautioning that any further military expansion risks triggering a sweeping security collapse across the region.
It called on the UN Security Council and influential global powers to shoulder their responsibilities and respond "urgently and decisively" to stop the Israeli offensive from spiraling further out of control.
"The continued escalation will lead to further chaos and instability in the region," the ministry warned, acknowledging that regional and international actors are currently engaged in intensive diplomatic efforts to contain the crisis.
Separately, Lebanon's Foreign Ministry confirmed early Sunday that French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot informed his Lebanese counterpart Youssef Raggi that Paris would push for an emergency session of the UN Security Council in direct response to the latest Israeli escalation.
Beaufort Castle carries deep historical and strategic weight in the region. Israeli forces first withdrew from the fortress in 2000 as part of a broader pullout from the self-declared "security zone" they had occupied in southern Lebanon from 1982 to 2000 — making its recapture a symbolically charged and operationally significant development.
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