Irish UN peacekeepers in Lebanon took cover as area under fire from Israeli army

Members of the Irish Defence Forces sought protection in bunkers for about four hours in south Lebanon after their area of operations came under fire from the Israeli army.

The UN peacekeepers in the 450-strong battalion, members of the 114th infantry battalion, took cover after an exchange of fire between the Israeli defence forces and the Iranian-supported Hezbollah on Sunday afternoon.

The Irish soldiers responded to the codeword “Groundhog” directing them to take cover in bomb shelters and to don helmets and body armour as the incoming fire from the Israeli forces fell in their area.

The Defence Forces tweeted that Irish personnel were “out of shelters” and “resuming routine” on Sunday evening, several hours after announcing that they had taken shelter “as a precautionary measure” after the rockets were fired on Sunday afternoon.

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None of the Irish troops were injured. A spokesman for the Defence Forces said that they were “safe and well.”

The largest component of the Irish battalion is from the 28th infantry battalion, which is based at Finner Camp in Co Donegal, but others come from barracks in Dublin, Athlone and Dundalk and Gormanston Camp in Co Meath. They are half-way through a tour that began in May and ends in November.

Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shia Muslim militant group, fired anti-tank rockets at an Israeli army base and military jeep in northern Israel in retaliation for a reported Israeli drone attack in Beirut last week.

In response, the Israeli military said that its artillery cannons and attack helicopters fired about 100 shells and bombs at Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon.