Irish soldiers have returned to peacekeeping duties in Lebanon for the first time in a decade.
A group of 200 Irish soldiers left Dublin early Thursday morning to take up peacekeeping duties in Lebanon.
This renewed deployment with the United Nations force (UNIFIL) is expected to last at least three years.
It is the first time for a decade that Irish troops are helping to keep the peace in Lebanon.
They served there for nearly quarter of a century from 1978 and 47 Irish peacekeepers died while on duty.
The peacekeepers that left overnight will be joined next Monday by a further 200 troops.
Most of the battalion come from the West of Ireland. They will patrol a 140sq/km area from Tibnin in southern Lebanon to the border with Israel.
The Minister for Justice and Defence Alan Shatter has said the dangers faced by the Irish peacekeepers should not be underestimated.
Chief of Staff Lt Gen Sean McCann said this battalion of Irish peacekeepers is the best trained and equipped ever.
They will be involved with patrolling, reconnaissance, and occupying static posts, while operating in close coordination with the Lebanese Armed Forces.
At the moment, 130 Irish peacekeepers are serving in 15 small missions around the world - including Bosnia, Kosovo, Congo, Afghanistan, Ivory Coast and Western Sahara.
A small group of Irish soldiers spent about a year in Lebanon in 2006 when they protected bomb disposal teams following an escalation of trouble.
