Kitbuqa

The 1260 CE battle where the Mamluk Sultanate defeated the Mongol Empire in the Jezreel Valley, marking the first major Mongol defeat and halting their westward expansion into the Islamic heartlands.

Sayf al-Din Qutuz (c. 1221-1260) was the third Mamluk sultan of Egypt, reigning under a year. He executed Hulegu's envoys, marched into Syria, and defeated the Mongol army at Ain Jalut in September 1260, then was assassinated weeks later by conspirators including Baybars.