Banu Qasi
King García Íñiguez had worked towards a closer relationship with the Kingdom of Asturias, distancing himself and his kingdom from the Banu Qasi dynasty that ruled the lands near the Ebro river. He was involved in repeated armed conflicts with the Muslim forces of the Banu Qasi, and Muhammad I, emir of Córdoba, who invaded Pamplona in the year 860 and captured Fortún in Milagro, along with his daughter Onneca Fortúnez and took them hostages in Córdoba. The Wali of Zaragoza Muhammad ibn Lubb besieged and ultimately destroyed the castle of Aibar, resulting in the death of the king García Íñiguez. After the death of his father, Fortún Garcés was allowed to return to Pamplona to take his place as king. Fortún Garcés reigned with a policy very accommodating to the wishes of the Banu Qasi clan, which caused anger within the Pamplonese nobility. He would frequently retire to the Monastery of Leyre.