The UN Security Council has voted today to withdraw UNIFIL forces from southern Lebanon by the year 2027. Here Paul Cunningham looks back at Irish involvement in Lebanon.
Ireland's relationship with Lebanon goes back as far as 1958, when a team of 50 officers was deployed there.
The mission was called the UN Observer Group in Lebanon and amounted to Ireland's first contribution to UN peacekeeping.
They served as observers along the Armistice Demarcation Line between Lebanon and Israel. In 1978, however, a full contingent was sent - comprising 650 soldiers on a six-month tour of duty.
The trigger had been a Palestinian attack, from Lebanon, on northern Israel which left 30 civilians dead. Israel's response was to invade.
On 19 March 1978 - in UN Security Council resolutions 425 and 426 - the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, or UNIFIL, was established.
The Irish peacekeepers were generally infantry units who were lightly armed.
The UN mandate made provision for the use of arms for self-defence - something defined as action against attempts, by forceful means, to prevent UNIFIL from discharging its duties.
By 1983, it had become a frozen conflict with Israel controlling a 15km zone inside Lebanon, up to the Litani River, operated by its surrogate militia the South Lebanon Army.
The Irish UNIFIL contingent was, in part, trying to prevent attacks from armed Lebanese groups, such as Amal and Hezbollah, on SLA controlled territory and northern Israel.
Read more:
UN mission in Lebanon on course to end in 2027
Appeal lodged against sentences over Seán Rooney murder
Members of these resistance groups would emerge from deep ravines and initiate surprise attacks.
Deadly attacks by the militants could trigger massive bombardments and lead to an exodus of the local people.
The Irish UNIFL contingent patrolled territory around the towns and villages of Tibnin, Bra'shit, Bayt Yahun, Haddatha and At-Tiri.
Their presence brought some level of security but, equally welcome, was the fact that the troops provided health and dental care to the local communities.
That said, Irish peacekeepers were at risk of being killed by either side in the conflict.
Road traffic crashes accounted for some of the 47 Irish peacekeeping deaths in Lebanon - including the first losses of life: Private Gerard Moon and Corporal Thomas Reynolds.
However, 15 peacekeepers died in the line of fire.
In 1981, Private Stephen Griffin, Private Thomas Barrett and Private Derek Smallhorne were killed by the Israel proxy militia, the SLA, over just three days.
The following year saw one of worst moments of the entire UNIFIL mission when Irish Defence Force Private Michael McAleavey shot dead Private Peter Burke, Private Thomas Murphy and Corporal Gregory Morrow at a checkpoint. He was later convicted by a military court of their murders.
Ireland's engagement with Lebanon ended in 2000.
After 22 years, then Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak wanted to disentangle his country from what had become a quagmire and he pulled his troops out.
That action led 5,000 SLA fighters and their families to also cross into Israel - not wanting to see what happened when Lebanese forces took control.
As a result, UNIFIL was significantly reduced with Irish forces departing.
Yet, due to instability, Irish troops returned full time to Lebanon in 2011 and continue today to operate in partnership with Polish peacekeepers.
They are based closer to the Lebanese border with Israel than had been the case between 1978 and 2000. The size of the Irish contingent has been halved in size.
The mandate remains what might be called 'traditional peacekeeping' and UNIFIL conducts joint patrols with Lebanese national forces.
The last Irish soldier to die on UN peacekeeping duties was Private Seán Rooney, who was shot dead while serving in the region in 2022.
Private Rooney and several colleagues were a short distance from the main highway into Beirut when their vehicle was fired on near the southern Lebanese village of Al-Aqbiya on 14 December 2022.
