Israel and Syria agree ceasefire as Syrian security forces begin deploying in Sweida
Syria’s Sweida province has been engulfed by nearly a week of violence
Lebanon
Defence Forces concerned about sensitive information being revealed at inquest of Private Seán Rooney
Pte Rooney (24) was killed in attack on peacekeeper convoy in Lebanon in 2022
‘Everyone is digging for gold now’: Desperate Syrians resort to scouring ancient sites
Security vacuum after Assad downfall has led to plundering for Greek, Roman and Byzantine artefacts
‘Everybody can feel the pain’: Middle Eastern views on the present and future
A Syrian, a Palestinian, an Iranian and an Israeli give their views on how better times might be reached where they live
Middle East in maps: Key territories in the current conflict
A map-based guide to understand wars and conflict in the Middle East
Israel-Iran ceasefire leaves key questions unanswered
It remains to be seen whether the Iranian nuclear programme was obliterated or merely set back
Tánaiste lobbies European partners amid concern for Irish deployment in Lebanon
Unifil mission requires UN Security Council vote amid fears US will act to end or scale it back
Iran’s Gulf neighbours continue to urge restraint following US strikes on nuclear sites
Saudi Arabia leads calls for political solution to end Middle East crisis
Demining in Syria: ‘People are desperate to go back to their houses... In their mind the main threat is gone’
There have been more than 900 mine-related injuries or fatalities in Syria since the fall of the Assad regime
Last November Israel decided covert operations would not quell Iran’s nuclear threat
With almost 2,000km between Tel Aviv and Tehran, this is Israel’s first long-distance war
‘Axis of Resistance’ in no position to help Iran
Self-preservation and national interest mean regional allies can do little more than express support
Israel and Iran continue to exchange attacks as death tolls and calls for de-escalation grow
Tánaiste warns against travel to either country as Irish embassy staff work with citizens actively seeking to leave them
Accommodation sought for 500 refugees under international resettlement plan
Ireland fell behind on commitments made in 2020-2023 to bring in 2,900 refugees
Lebanon complains of ‘one-sided ceasefire’ after Israeli air strikes on Beirut
IDF says Thursday’s wave of bombings, more than six months after truce agreement, was targeting Hizbullah drone-making facilities
Seán Rooney: Mother of Irish soldier killed in Lebanon is given permission to sue United Nations
Legal action over his death during peacekeeping patrol is about ‘truth and accountability’, says Natasha Rooney
Ireland issues formal protest letter to Israel over shots fired towards Unifil unit in Lebanon
Démarche says Thursday incident as ‘completely unacceptable’
Ireland to lodge letter of objection to Israel over shots fired close to Unifil patrol in south Lebanon
Irish troops uninjured and Unifil patrols resumed as normal on Friday
Israeli army used laser weapons for first time to down Hizbullah drones
Military chief says €5-a-shot technological breakthrough heralds new era in warfare, ‘the laser era’
Irish peacekeepers come under fire while on patrol in Lebanon
Israel Defense Forces responsible for incident, said Tánaiste Simon Harris in statement
For all his bragging, Trump knows he has little leverage with either Putin or Netanyahu
Just as Trump folded his tent in the Doha discussions on Afghanistan and gave up threats to forcibly end North Korea’s missile programme, his boasts about doing deals look empty
Lebanon begins drive to defang militant groups
Push to demilitarise Palestinian factions seen as precursor to far tougher bid to disarm Hizbullah
Lebanon ‘intense and unpredictable’ say troops welcomed home at Dublin Airport
Six-month Unifil deployment in Lebanon completed by 170 troops
Irish troops report being observed in Lebanon amid ‘aggressive postures’ by Israeli army
All Irish personnel are ‘safe and well’, Defence Forces say
Irish troops to remain part of Unifil mission in Lebanon for another year, Harris to announce
Tánaiste also to provide update on case of Pte Seán Rooney, who was killed in Lebanon in 2022
In Lebanon I eat lunch and listen for the thrum of planes, the blasts of bombs
Beirut Letter: I am unused to the sudden contrast between joy and violence, and feel a deep disquiet
‘I thank God every day it was me he attacked’: Army chaplain forgives boy who stabbed him
Fr Paul Murphy says ‘everything was blessed’ on the night in question
Israeli strikes on Syria hit area near presidential palace in Damascus
Escalation indicates Israel’s preparedness to ramp up military action in name of Syria’s Druze minority
US approves €40m deal to sell Javelin anti-tank missile systems to Ireland
Missiles, used by Ireland’s Defence Forces since 2006, are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin and have been deployed in Ukraine
The Great Betrayal: The Struggle for Freedom and Democracy in the Middle East by Fawaz A Gerges – engaging read for seasoned observers
The scope is perhaps too broad, and the prose a little dry, for this book to appeal to the general reader
Lebanon marks 50th anniversary since outbreak of its civil war
Call for anniversary to be ‘a turning point, and not just a moment of remembrance’
Women protesting outside Leinster House strip-searched, one subjected to cavity search, Dáil hears
TDs protest at Garda treatment, Taoiseach did not understand ‘necessity for any strip-searching’
Hizbullah official among four killed in Israeli air strike on Beirut suburb
Attack tests unsteady ceasefire between Israel and Hizbullah
More than 6,000 modern body armour units to be acquired for Irish soldiers
Simon Harris says €16.5m contract in place to invest in protection of Defence Forces personnel
Israel strikes Beirut for first time since agreeing ceasefire with Hizbullah
Attack on Lebanese capital ‘unjustified’, says French president Emmanuel Macron
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