Irish peacekeeping troops escape injury after Lebanon camp struck by rocket

A military camp in southern Lebanon where Irish peacekeeping troops are based has been struck by a rocket, the Chief of Staff of Ireland’s Defence Forces has said.

Lieutenant General Sean Clancy said all troops in Camp Shamrock at the time of the strike on Wednesday afternoon are safe and well, with the Katyusha rocket landing in an unoccupied area of the base.

Irish premier Simon Harris described the incident as “extremely serious”.

Lt Gen Clancy said the rocket was travelling north to south, towards Israel, when it came down.

He said it was unclear whether it fell or was taken down by Israel’s Iron Dome defence system.

Camp Shamrock, known as United Nations Post 2-45, is a short distance from the Israeli border and is close to areas controlled by Hezbollah militants.

There are around 350 soldiers currently deployed with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) carrying out peacekeeping duties.

Lt Gen Clancy confirmed the incident during a Defence Forces event in Co Westmeath on Thursday and said the rocket had caused minimal damage.

He said: “I can confirm that yesterday afternoon there was a Katyusha rocket that landed within 2-45, this was by an armed element obviously, our assessment is it was travelling north to south into Israel.

“A lot of these are undirected, unguided and therefore unpredictable rockets, and they have been known to fall or been taken down by the Iron Dome, we haven’t assessed which or whether that is right now.

“But it did fall in an unoccupied area of the camp itself. It caused minimal damage on the ground.”

He said bomb disposal officers sealed off the area on Wednesday night and dampened the ground before making the device safe on Thursday morning.

“All personnel are safe and well, and, of course, force protection is a priority for us and all the precautions we take and have been taking, which are working quite well, worked effectively on this occasion,” the chief of staff added.

Lt Gen Clancy and Ireland’s deputy premier and Minister for Defence Micheal Martin participated in a military event at Custume Barracks in Athlone on Thursday for the members of the 125th Battalion of the Defence Forces who are preparing to take over from their counterparts in Lebanon when Irish troops on peacekeeping duties are next rotated.

Mr Martin said the incident “illustrates the risks are there” for Irish peacekeepers.

“There’s no hiding from that fact. We are in a very challenging environment and that is why force protection is extremely important,” he said, adding that the troops were at ‘Level 2’ when the strike occurred.

“It is a much more challenging environment now than it perhaps would have been, that is why we are pushing very strongly for a de-escalation in the region that is absolutely essential for the people of the region and also for the world.

“We cannot understate the importance of all sides pulling back from the brink now and engineering a ceasefire and working through a peaceful path. We’re very conscious of the risks involved.”

Taoiseach Mr Harris said he was thankful no-one had been hurt in the rocket strike.

“In relation to Camp Shamrock, I have been kept informed of it through yesterday evening and, indeed, into today,” he told reporters in Co Kildare on Thursday.

“This is an extremely serious situation, whilst it seems what happens is this – that a rocket was fired, that rocket was taken down by what they call the Iron Dome, and part of that rocket then fell on, thankfully, an unoccupied part of Camp Shamrock, home to our Irish peacekeepers, and thankfully nobody has been hurt or injured, and thankfully all our peacekeepers are accounted for and safe, and that is a good thing.”

Mr Harris said there was an obligation in international law to protect and not target peacekeepers.

“What we have seen in the last number of days, on many occasions throughout the Unifil mission, and what we saw yesterday in relation to Camp Shamrock, is a situation where even if peacekeepers aren’t being actively targeted, certainly enough steps are not being taken to protect them,” he said.

“Therefore, I really reiterate my call in relation to the need for people to respect international law and respect the specific protections that are provided to peacekeepers in relation to that.”