Irish Army
Land service branch of the Irish Defence Forces
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February 25 2025 | Currently serving 493 Defence Force personnel across 12 different international missions, including deployments in Lebanon (UNIFIL), Syria (UNDOF), Middle East (UNTSO), and Kosovo (KFOR). |
2024 | Inductions to the Irish Defence Forces exceeded the number of discharges, indicating potential growth or increased recruitment in the military personnel strength. |
December 14 2022 | One Irish peacekeeper was killed and seven others were injured in a small arms fire incident in the Hezbollah-controlled village of Al-Aqbieh. |
November 2022 | 333 Irish soldiers deployed to southern Lebanon as part of UNIFIL's 121st Infantry Battalion. |
2021 | Tender issued for 20 new DROPS (Demountable Rack Offload and Pickup System) vehicles |
January 2021 | Defence Forces stated a replacement was being sought for the FN FAL rifles. |
2020 | 120 Scania P 370B 4x4 troop carrying vehicles ordered for delivery between 2020-2023 |
2020 | 28 additional Toyota Landcruiser/Centigon Fortress 200 Intervention vehicles ordered |
2019 | Contract awarded for 48 Honda NC750X motorcycles for ceremonial escort |
2019 | 280 Toyota Landcruisers ordered for delivery between 2019-2023 to replace older vehicles |
2018 | The UN contingent returned to the Syria side of the de facto border after Syrian government forces took Daraa and Quneitra from rebel forces in the Southern Syria offensive. |
2018 | 24 Toyota Landcruiser/Centigon Fortress 200 Intervention armoured utility vehicles were ordered |
2016 | Irish Army participated in the German-led Battle Group, deploying Defence Force personnel as part of international military missions. |
November 2016 | Ireland took over command of the Battalion from Finland, deploying an additional 150 personnel to bring their UNIFIL contribution to 340 personnel. |
2014 | Irish troops were withdrawn to the Israeli-occupied Golan region due to safety concerns raised by the Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs. |
2014 | 9 Mowag Piranha armoured personnel carriers were converted to close reconnaissance vehicles |
2014 | Enhanced Steyr AUG rifles with ACOG 4x32 optical sights (Model 14 or MOD 14) started entering service. RBS-70 Missile system launchers upgraded with improved firing units, new simulators, and night vision equipment. |
August 2014 | Irish 44th Infantry Group conducted a combat mission to rescue 35 Filipino UN troops after 44 Fijian UN troops were captured by the Al Nusra rebel organization. The Irish provided an armoured escort and exchanged fire with heavy machine guns, with no UN casualties. |
November 29 2013 | Irish peacekeepers were attacked by Syrian rebels. The Irish convoy came under small arms fire, and a Mowag APC struck a land mine. Irish troops returned fire with 12.7mm heavy machine guns, causing the rebels to retreat. |
September 2013 | The 43 Infantry Group, consisting of 115 personnel, deployed to Syria as UN peacekeepers for the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) in the Golan region. |
May 7 2013 | The government of Ireland officially issued an amnesty and apology to the soldiers who had deserted during World War II. |
2012 | Irish Army reorganized from three brigades to two brigades: 1st Brigade at Collins Barracks in Cork and 2nd Brigade at Cathal Brugha Barracks in Dublin. |
2012 | Bofors 40 mm L/70 anti-aircraft autocannons removed from service. |
2011 | Budgetary decisions made that led to a reorganization of the Irish Army's brigade structure. |
2011 | Irish battalions returned to Lebanon, initially deploying approximately 480 troops in the region. |
2011 | Accuracy International AWM Sniper Rifle entered service, chambered for .338 Lapua Magnum round. |
2010 | Concluded the deployment of Irish troops in Kosovo as part of the KFOR mission. |
May 2010 | Final Irish contingent completes peacekeeping tour in Chad, concluding Ireland's involvement in the EUFOR Chad/CAR mission. |
January 2010 | 102nd Infantry Battalion deploys to Chad, marking the near-conclusion of Ireland's peacekeeping mission. |
This contents of the box above is based on material from the Wikipedia articles List of equipment of the Irish Army & Irish Army, which are released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.