60 Minutes reporter Tara Brown and a film crew have been detained by Lebanese police after trying to film the recovery of two Australian children who had been taken to Beirut by their Lebanese father.

Brown, veteran producer Steven Rice and a cameraman were reporting on an operation to recover the two children of Brisbane woman Sally Faulkner from her former husband Ali Elamine.

The children, Lahela, 6, and Noah, 4, were taken to Lebanon for a holiday by Mr Elamine who runs a Beirut surf business.

Despite promising the holiday would last for only a short period of time Mr Elamine is alleged to have refused to return the children to Australia.