Ireland

Irish troops in Lebanon: How many are there and are they at risk?

If an Israeli invasion pushed north up to the Litani river, Irish troops would be caught in the centre of fighting

Irish Army peacekeepers at an outpost along the Blue Line between Israel and Lebanon: In August, an Irish patrol vehicle was damaged in an Israeli air strike on a Lebanese village. There were no injuries. Photograph: Hannah McCarthy
Irish Army peacekeepers at an outpost along the Blue Line between Israel and Lebanon: In August, an Irish patrol vehicle was damaged in an Israeli air strike on a Lebanese village. There were no injuries. Photograph: Hannah McCarthy
Conor Gallagher's picture
Conor Gallagher
Tue Oct 01 2024 - 14:07

There are almost 400 Irish troops stationed on peacekeeping duties in Lebanon and they intend to remain in place even if Israel stages a full-scale invasion over the coming weeks.

But where are they based, and could they be drawn into fighting?

Where are Irish troops stationed in Lebanon?

The Defence Forces 124th Infantry Battalion, comprising 379 Defence Forces troops, is responsible for patrolling a large area in the southeast of the county, alongside personnel from Poland and Malta. The area of operations directly borders Israel and has been the site of many incoming air strikes and outgoing rocket and missile attacks in recent months.

Although the region is technically under the jurisdiction of the Lebanese army, Hizbullah is the dominant force in the area.

READ MORE

The Irish battalion headquarters is located in Camp Shamrock, near Bint Jbeil, about 30 minutes’ drive from the border with Israel. It also mans a second smaller base nearby.

What are they doing there?

Ireland has been a contributor to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) since its foundation in 1978. During that time, 47 personnel have been killed, the most of any troop-contributing country. The most recent fatality was Pte Seán Rooney, who was killed in an ambush by Hizbullah militants in December 2022.

[ Irish troops in Lebanon will remain in place to continue monitoring and humanitarian work ]

Unifil’s mandate is to supervise the 1978 peace deal between Israel and Lebanon and to prevent a fresh outbreak of conflict. It does this through patrols, checkpoints and community engagement. Irish troops are also responsible for monitoring part of the “Blue Line”, the de facto border between Israel and Lebanon.

Are they at risk?

There have been increasingly frequent exchanges of fire across the Blue Line since Israel launched its war in Gaza a year ago. Hizbullah has been firing rockets and missiles from near Unifil positions, and Israel has responded with air strikes or artillery fire, often forcing Irish troops to take cover in bunkers – action known as “going to groundhog”.

[ Nasrallah assassination marked by declarations of days of mourning and widespread condemnation ]

Last month, an Irish patrol vehicle was damaged in an Israeli air strike on a Lebanese village. There were no injuries. The pace of Israeli operations has become more significant in the last two weeks, raising fears of a full-scale invasion.

Overnight on Tuesday, Israeli forces launched what it called “limited, localised and targeted ground raids” against Hizbullah targets in Lebanon. In a statement, the Defence Forces said though the situation is tense, “all Irish personnel remain accounted for and safe. They remain vigilant and are maintaining force protection measures”.

Tánaiste Micheál Martin said the Irish troops are well prepared and that “Unifil is doing everything it can at command level to make sure that the peacekeepers are protected in the context of the escalation that is occurring”.

Mr Martin also confirmed troops in the Irish HQ remain supplied with fresh rations and there are “contingency supply chain arrangements” in place in the event of issues with resupplying the mission. However, wifi in the camp has gone down.

If Israel launches a full-scale invasion, what will happen to the Irish battalion?

The Israel government has stated one of its war aims is to allow Israel citizens evacuated from areas near the Lebanese border to return to their homes. This means it would have to prevent Hizbullah from launching further rocket attacks from south Lebanon.

The limited incursions this week are outside the Irish area of operations. But the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) has been massing thousands more troops on the border, raising fears it intends to launch a full-scale invasion.

[ Irish in Lebanon: ‘We have shelling, air strikes, machine gun fire. It gets the adrenaline flowing’ ]

Israel may wish to push all the way up to Beirut in the north of the country, just as it did in 2006. A more likely scenario is an invasion up to Litani river, which would put Irish troops at the centre of the fighting. If this happens, Unifil freedom of movement would be severely limited and troops would probably be confined to base. This was largely what happened during previous invasions of Lebanon, including the last incursion in 2006.

It is also possible the UN will pull the mission entirely. However, currently there are no plans for Unifil to cease operations.

Could Irish troops be involved in the fighting?

As a peacekeeping rather than peace-enforcement force, Unifil is not mandated to use armed means to bring hostilities to an end once they have broken out. However, Irish troops are empowered to use force to protect themselves and their outposts if they come under attack.

Unifil also has a mandate to protect the civilian population. However, its power to act in the face of a full-scale invasion would probably be extremely limited.