Irish troops, through the United Nations mission in Lebanon, are responsible for monitoring a large part of the defacto border between northern Israel and southern Lebanon.
Early on Tuesday there were reports of Israeli raids into southern Lebanon, triggering concerns of a looming invasion.
Israeli politicians say the target of their operations is the powerful Iran-backed Lebanese group, Hezbollah, which controls large parts of the south.
Most reports refer to strikes, incidents and incursions across "the border" in general, but what is known about the area where Irish troops are located and operating within?
Local media reports, statements from various parties, and verifiable footage online provide some insights.
The Irish AOR
The Irish UNIFIL battalion's area of responsibility (AOR) in southern Lebanon is geographically small but strategically important. It is about 100 square kilometres in size, similar in size to Cork City.
On Sunday into Monday 30 Sept, Israeli air strikes hit at least two locations in the Irish AOR, in the towns of Kounine and Bint Jbiel, according to local media reports. On Tuesday, there were reports of two further strikes.
It has not been unusual for air strikes to target locations in the Irish AOR in recent months, by several in a short period of time is indicative of an escalation. Hezbollah rockets have been fired from all across southern Lebanon into positions in northern Israel in that time.
The Irish AOR adjoins the area overseen by Ghanaian UN peacekeepers. It has seen some of the most significant levels of military activity in recent days.
The Irish Defence Forces said on Tuesday morning that "while the situation is tense all Irish personnel remain accounted for and safe."
In practice, the intensity of rocket fire and military activity has severely limited patrolling by UNIFIL troops. That means most Irish troops are now located in the main base in the AOR, called Camp Shamrock, while others are in positioned in two platoon-sized posts nearer the defacto and disputed border – which is often referred to as 'the blue line.’
There are conflicting reports about where specifically Israeli commando raids occurred early on Tuesday, but Arabic-language media reported gunfire and significant activity near the villages of Rymach, and Ayta ash Shab, which are in the Ghanaian AOR, but about two kilometres from the Irish zone.
The Israeli military said the ground operation into southern Lebanon early on Tuesday was "limited, localised, and targeted... based on precise intelligence against Hezbollah terrorist targets and infrastructure in southern Lebanon."
"These targets are located in villages close to the border and pose an immediate threat to Israeli communities in northern Israel."
It did not estimate how long the operation would take to conclude or which areas it would specifically target, saying just it "will continue according to the situational assessment and in parallel to combat in Gaza and in other arenas."
However, other IDF statements provide some indications in relation to the areas of southern Lebanon the IDF is currently focused upon.
In the hours after the initial statement was released, the IDF's Arabic language spokesperson called for people living in named towns and villages along the border to "evacuate your homes immediately."
The areas are located all across the UNIFIL zone. Several of the places are within the Irish AOR. Bint Jbeil is the main town near the Irish base, Camp Shamrock. It is three kilometres from the camp as the crow flies, and is on the IDF list.
A third IDF statement issued between midnight and midday on Tuesday called for Lebanese people not to move vehicles south across the Litani river. That river is the line with delineates most of the northern boundary of the wider UNIFIL operation.
A 2006 UN resolution under which UNIFIL functions requires Hezbollah to withdraw north across the Litani. While Hezbollah has not had a visible military presence since that resolution, the group still holds sway over large parts of the south and fires rockets from the area into Israel.
The IDF statement on vehicles may be an indication of the potential scope of the planned IDF operation: combined with the geographic distribution of the towns the IDF wants to see evacuated, it may indicate an operation that will take at least several weeks, rather than several days.
The UNIFIL mission issued its own statement around 11AM on Tuesday.
"Yesterday, the IDF notified UNIFIL of their intention to undertake limited ground incursions into Lebanon," it said.
"Despite this dangerous development, peacekeepers remain in position. We are regularly adjusting our posture and activities, and we have contingency plans ready to activate if absolutely necessary."
"We urge all actors to step back from such escalatory acts, which will only lead to more violence and more bloodshed. The price of continuing the current course of action is too high."
"Any crossing into Lebanon is in violation of Lebanese sovereignty and territorial integrity, and a violation of resolution 1701," it added. Resolution 1701 is the UN resolution agreed in 2006 to conclude the hostilities of the Israel-Hezbollah war.
Around the same time, the Irish Defence Forces Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Seán Clancy moved to address any concerns held by families of Irish troops who are currently deployed in Lebanon.
"I want to reassure the families of our personnel deployed in the region that the safety of our troops is our utmost priority, and we appreciate the support from their families during this time," he said.
"While the current circumstances are challenging, our personnel remain committed to their peacekeeping mission and are well-trained to handle such volatility."
The bigger picture
The tension along the border has escalated since the Hamas attacks of 7 October 2023. In the year since, Hezbollah - which is allied to Hamas through its mutual hatred of Israel and support from Iran - has been firing rockets into Israel.
60,000 Israeli citizens have fled their homes in the border region, and the Israeli military has targeted hundreds of Hezbollah positions with air strikes and tank fire.
The UNIFIL mission in southern Lebanon has been in place since 1978. In the decades since there have been various conflicts in the area, and its mandate has changed and been adjusted.
However in recent years Lebanon's political and governance structures have all but collapsed. The country is increasingly considered a 'failed state’ and the Hezbollah organisation has taken advantage of the power vacuum.
Hezbollah is often referred to as "as state within a State." It is a Shia Muslim political and military organisation which controls much of the south, and vies for power within wider Lebanon with Christian and Sunni Muslim groupings.
Hezbollah operates public services and has had ministers within the country’s government, it also controls tens of thousands of hardened fighters who have operated during wars with Israel, and alongside Syrian dictator Bashar Al-Assad's military during the war in Syria.
The EU designates Hezbollah’s military wing a terror organisation.
The Lebanese army is officially the country’s military, and the UNIFIL troops are tasked with helping it with "demilitarising" the UN-monitored areas of the South, including from Hezbollah.
