The commander in charge of Irish peacekeepers in South Lebanon has described the situation in the region as "tense and volatile'' and said there is a sense that an escalation in the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah is imminent.
Lt Col Tom Fox told RTÉ's This Week programme that there is a level of uncertainty that is at its highest since April of this year.
There are 332 Irish peacekeepers stationed at Camp Shamrock in South Lebanon, and at an Irish outpost close to the blue line - the effective border between Israel and Lebanon.
Since October of last year Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged hostilities, with almost daily rocket fire and air strikes taking place in the region.
However, a further escalation is expected after a rocket strike on a soccer pitch in the Israeli=occupied Golan Heights last weekend killed 12 children and teenagers and which Israel said was carried out by Hezbollah, and also an attack by Israel in Beirut which killed a Hezbollah leader.
Tensions between Israel and Iran, which provides Hezbollah with weapons and finances, have further increased after the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
Speaking from South Lebanon, Lt Col Tom Fox said there has been an intensification in attacks involving Israel and Hezbollah in recent weeks.
"The Israeli defence forces, using their air superiority have targeted Hezbollah actors and leadership and command and control centres with air and drone strikes"
"They’ve also conducted direct fire weapons attacks such as using tanks to target Hezbollah firing points."
"Hezbollah have demonstrated a level of sophistication in terms of weaponry to primarily target IDF personnel in Northern Israel and the occupied Golan using rockets, drones and medium range missiles."
He said Irish troops have had to take shelter in bunkers on a number of occasions but are able to continue to operate from bunker positions.
He said the troops stationed at the Irish manned outpost on the blue line have experienced daily exchanges of fire between Israel and Hezbollah militants.
There have been intense exchanges and several violations of the fragile peace agreement in the region.
Asked if there is a concern that there could be a full-scale regional war, he said there are always concerns that regional tensions could operate on tactical operations.
"There is definitely a lot of regional tension," he said.
Lt Col Fox said there are contingency plans in place if the peacekeeping mission becomes untenable "but that is not our focus at the moment" he said.
"Our focus is totally committed to remaining here and conducting our operations as we have been doing since deploying."
He said the morale of the soldiers remains high both in Camp Shamrock and on the blue line.
"We are well trained to react to any changing situation. We are all safe and sound here, and all our operations are planned with the safety of our peacekeepers foremost."
"We mitigate all risks where possible, while maintaining that visible presence and reassurance to the local population of South Lebanon."
