Israeli forces blow up structures near Lebanon’s Beaufort Castle

Israel claims army blew up Hezbollah tunnels in southern Lebanon, amid reports of blasts near UNESCO-listed fortress.Israeli forces have carried out a series of powerful detonations near Lebanon’s UNESCO-listed Beaufort Castle, as they continue to occupy southern Lebanon despite a United States-brokered “ceasefire” agreement.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel-katz" class="entity-link entity-person" data-entity-id="4249" data-entity-type="person">Israel Katz said in a statement on Friday that the army blew up a tunnel system in the Beaufort area that they claimed formed a key part of Hezbollah’s plan to infiltrate communities in the Galilee.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4‘Just want to go back’: Lebanese await return as army enters ‘pilot zone’list 2 of 4Trump push for Syrian intervention against Hezbollah ‘short-sighted’list 3 of 4Israel carries out blasts across south Lebanon despite ‘ceasefire’ deallist 4 of 4Lebanon’s displaced endure ‘exhaustion and despair’end of listThey said about “700 tons of explosives” were used in the operation, describing it as part of an ongoing campaign to dismantle Hezbollah’s infrastructure in southern Lebanon.“Israeli forces triggered very powerful explosions around midnight,” in the area near the “Beaufort fortress”, Lebanon’s official National News Agency (NNA) said.An NNA correspondent reported that the violent explosions shattered windows in several homes in the town of Qlayaa due to the force of the blasts and the shockwaves felt by residents throughout the area.The Crusader-era castle, located in the southern area occupied by Israel, was added last week to UNESCO’s List of World Heritage in Danger.Earlier, NNA also reported that Israeli forces demolished and destroyed a number of caves and houses in the vicinity of al-Mansouri and Majdal Zoun in the Tyre district using several shells.NNA added that Israeli forces carried out very large explosions at midnight in the areas of Yohmor al-Shaqif, Arnoun and Kfar Tebnit, the sound of which was reportedly heard across the southern regions.