There were tears of joy in the arrivals terminal of Dublin Airport on Tuesday night as some 160 Irish peacekeepers returned from deployment in Lebanon.
The Irish soldiers were greeted by proud family and friends after the grueling six months with the United Nations Interim Force (UNIFIL).
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During their time deployed, the 127th Infantry Battalion carried out a number of operations.
Among the events was the medical evacuation of a wounded Ghanaian soldier and resupplying other UN Posts.
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Commanding Officer of the 127th Infantry Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Mark Lennon, lauded the men and women under his command.
"The whole nation should be proud of them," he stated, adding that the Defence Forces were "punching way above our weight."
"Even in the conflict zone and in those dangerous missions, our troops are well capable — they thrived in that environment," he said.
Lt. Col. Lennon explained that there were "mixed emotions" returning home due to the devastation imposed on the villages that were in the Irish area of operations.
He said: "It is war-torn, and it's damaged — and in many ways, it was poignant and quite sad leaving today."
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Battalion Quartermaster Sergeant Paula Quinn was also amongst the homecomers, and also lauded her colleagues in Lebanon.
"The harder it got, the better people got on, they came together, their training came into it."
BQMS Quinn was welcomed home by her son Jack, who had a "Welcome Home Mammy" poster in tow.
The peacekeepers who returned on Tuesday were the last of the 127th Infantry Battalion to get home.
Members of the 128th Infantry Battalion will take their place and have already been deployed to Lebanon with UNIFIL.
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*This article was originally published on Extra.ie.
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