skip to main content

Irish troops in Lebanon safe, morale high says UNIFIL officer

Lt Col Seán Ó Fátharta says there are no plans yet for troops to move, but that contingency plans are in place (file image)
Lt Col Seán Ó Fátharta says there are no plans yet for troops to move, but that contingency plans are in place (file image)

A Senior Irish Officer in UNIFIL and the Deputy Force Commander of Sector West has said all Irish personnel in Lebanon are accounted for and safe, adding that morale is high.

"We are continuing with our work here despite the intensive Israeli air campaign targeting Hezbollah leadership," Lieutenant Colonel Seán Ó Fátharta said.

Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, he said that the situation is highly volatile and dangerous, but that every precaution is being taken.

"Although we have contingency plans and there is an evolving situation, we are not planning to move," he added.

"The plan is to stay in place. There have been five invasions of Lebanon since 1978 and UNIFIL has stayed the course every time."

Smoke rises in the air following an Israeli strike in south Lebanon

Lt Col Ó Fátharta said Irish troops have been able to carry out limited patrolling to conduct battle damage assessments when the opportunities present themselves.

"We are still on fresh rations," he said, adding that there are still challenges.

He said there has been a mass exodus of the local population, and estimated that tens of thousands have left South Lebanon.

"We estimate that around 90,000 have been displaced from South Lebanon alone."

"We have a protection of civilians plan in place," he explained, "and in the first few days some civilians entered our base but they have since left."

We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences


"They're moving north because they're very fearful that things will deteriorate."

Ó Fátharta said he believed the solution to the conflict will be found at a diplomatic level.

He also reassured members of the Polish, Hungarian and Maltese communities in Ireland that members of the Irish/Polish battalion are also accounted for and safe.

Lebanon's Health Ministry has said more than 1,000 Lebanese have been killed and 6,000 wounded in the past two weeks, without saying how many were civilians.

The government said a million people - a fifth of the population - have fled their homes.

The United Nations has said this morning that over 100,000 people have fled from Lebanon into Syria.


Follow live updates