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  • Originally posted by The real Jack View Post
    Trust you to state the obvious as usual, when the Hezbollah fire off some rockets in sympathy it'll spill over.
    I wouldn't worry about Lebanon to much as Hezbollah and Amal are to busy keeping the Sunni's under wraps.
    Its the actions of the new Egyptian leadership I would keep an eye on as they are friendly with Hamas.
    Last edited by Rhodes; 15 November 2012, 19:18.

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    • Originally posted by Rhodes View Post
      I wouldn't worry about Lebanon to much as Hezbollah and Amal are to busy keeping the Sunni's under wraps.
      Its the actions of the new Egyptian leadership I would keep an eye on as they are friendly with Hamas.
      I would keep a close watch on Nazralla and company in Leb. This could develop into the biggest scrap!

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      • Welcome home.

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        • Joy unrestrained as troops arrive home from six-month mission

          SCENES of joyful mayhem met Irish troops as they arrived home from a six month peace-keeping mission in the South Lebanon.

          176 members of the 106th IrishFinn battalion drawn from the Second Eastern Brigade touched down in Dublin airport this afternoon.

          For Commandant Bernard Markey, it was his first time to meet tiny daughter Diane (7 weeks) since her birth.

          "We did a catch and deliver," he joked, as he snuggled the little wide-eyed baby and put his blue beret on her head, trying it on for size.

          Chief of staff on this last mission, the trip was "an excellent one", he said - adding that it had been his 11th in total, having previously served in the Balkans, Africa and the Middle East.

          For newly engaged couple Julie O'Brien (25) and Danny Murphy (26) from Tallaght, the emotion was almost too much.

          "Never again," said Julie as she wiped away tears.

          The couple have four children and planning a wedding as well was a big burden to shoulder alone.

          Trying on her new diamond wedding ring - purchased in Beirut - Julie's tears were soon dried by happy smiles
          Last edited by Rhodes; 15 November 2012, 22:51.

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          • [B]
            For newly engaged couple Julie O'Brien (25) and Danny Murphy (26) from Tallaght, the emotion was almost too much.

            "Never again," said Julie as she wiped away tears
            Wow... good luck with that, Julie !!

            I don't know Danny, but if he's like me, he'll be aching to go in less than 2 years !!

            But coming home is always fantastic !! Enjoy guys !!
            "On the plains of hesitation, bleach the bones of countless millions, who on the very dawn of victory, laid down to rest, and in resting died.

            Never give up!!"

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            • Video about UNIFIL Maritime Task Force.

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              • She's as dim as a 40 watt bulb, great bod of course. Surprised they didn't make her get properly geared up on board.

                regards
                GttC

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                • Brasilians. Possibly the only race who wouldnt be distracted by a tanned hot bodied female. They see enough local talent at home to make foreign fluff uninteresting.


                  Catch-22 says they have a right to do anything we can't stop them from doing.

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                  • Beirut women are unbelievable.

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                    • Some videos from the Finnish filmed in Camp Shamrock and the Irish AO.




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                      • Originally posted by Rhodes View Post
                        Some videos from the Finnish filmed in Camp Shamrock and the Irish AO.
                        At least they can produce high quality videos, its pathetic the DF PR office cannot.
                        Everyone who's ever loved you was wrong.

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                        • especially since the DF has had a formal video-making unit since the 80s or before (DFAVS) and the DF in general has always had talented camera men/women on hand. Plenty of people in the Df are perfectly capable of using editing and video production technology. I knew of a few unofficial flight videos that were made, that were subsequently edited semi-professionally and were top quality, especially in the age of early digital cameras. Unofficial so no recognition.

                          regards
                          GttC

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                          • Here's an interesting article from the Legion magazine about the death of Cdn Maj Hess Von Kruedener, who was serving with UNTSO in 2006:

                            One Martyr Down: The Untold Story Of A Canadian Peacekeeper Killed At War

                            It is a long article, however, here are a couple of passages of interest:

                            One that relates to the Hezbollah founding manifesto and an idea of their firepower:

                            While clearly good at tactical concealment, there’s no doubt what Hezbollah are all about. The facts are clear: the Canadian and U.S. governments both consider them to be a terrorist organization—think al-Qaida without the “attack America” quotient—and they certainly have the credentials for it. Consider the sheer fanaticism of their founding manifesto: “We see in Israel the vanguard of the United States in our Islamic world…Therefore our struggle will end only when this entity is obliterated. We recognize no treaty with it, no ceasefire, and no peace agreements, whether separate or consolidated.”

                            So, not much point negotiating with them then, it seems.

                            As for exactly how capable they are, well, prepare for a shock: they have more weapons and missiles than most small countries. They have about 50,000 missiles of every kind: anti-tank, long-range, surface-to-air, short-range and anti-ship. Somewhat incredibly, they also have drones—one of which the Israelis shot down this summer.

                            So while Hezbollah may sometimes pretend to be defenders of the Lebanese state, it’s clear they’d be more interested in war with Israel than peace. Which, of course, makes it kind of strange that the UN is trying to supervise an evidently impossible truce between them and Israel.
                            And one that relates more directly to the UNIFIL mission and the UN as a whole:

                            In the time since Wolf was killed, it seems the organization has learned quite a bit. The war in 2006 made it obvious that the UN lacks effective protocols for extreme situations. It is a bureaucracy and if it stumbles into something for which it has no plan, no process, then it is instantly and sometimes fatally paralyzed. Now though, things are different: “Once the shooting starts, our job is done,” said Little.

                            They also learned from 2006 that it’s not a good idea to transmit exact locations of strikes in relation to their UN position.

                            For Little, who is after all risking his life by being here, there is some merit to the role the UN is playing in Southern Lebanon. “It’s unfortunate people here don’t think of [whether] the Israelis will attack, it’s when the Israelis will attack,” he said. “So people do get worried, and the calming presence of seeing a white vehicle with a blue beret sticking out of it is sometimes enough for them to think, ‘OK, we’re not alone.
                            Here's a note from the author:

                            In the end though, having visited the mission, it’s hard to see how the UN can consider itself a force for stability in Lebanon when it stands by as Hezbollah amasses an unbelievable stockpile of weapons and turns southern Lebanon into a fortress. It’s no wonder the Israelis have such disdain for the UN as, from their perspective at least, all the UN is really doing is acting as international human shields while the world’s most heavily equipped terrorist organization plots and prepares for the obliteration of the Israeli state. “Hezbollah needs us,” Little told me. “If we weren’t here I don’t think Hezbollah would be either.”
                            "On the plains of hesitation, bleach the bones of countless millions, who on the very dawn of victory, laid down to rest, and in resting died.

                            Never give up!!"

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                            • Irish and Belgian joint exercise in Lebanon.
                              The exercise involved an Irish firefighting team fighting a fire in the Belgian camp, a Belgian soldier acting as a casualty and receiving treatment from Irish medics.





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                              • Good article on ITALAIR.

                                One of the unsung heroes of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon is, incidentally, a support service. Established in 1979, just one year after UNIFIL itself was established, ITALAIR or Italian Air is one of the oldest units in UNIFIL. With over three decades of continuous service, ITALAIR has been a witness to much of UNIFIL and South Lebanon’s history, not to mention its own accomplishments, hardships, losses, and lessons learned.

                                ITALAIR was established in July 1979 as an aerial support unit for UNIFIL’s operations in South Lebanon, and it got started with just one helicopter.

                                Over the years, ITALAIR pilots have flown more than 36,000 hours, carrying more than 145,000 passengers on its transport missions.

                                After the July 2006 war in South Lebanon and the adoption of Security Council Resolution 1701, ITALAIR became a task force. The old helicopters were replaced with new and more advanced models, resulting in the current fleet of five Agusta Bell 212 helicopters.

                                The ITALAIR task force operates directly under the UNIFIL Force Commander and is comprised of crew from three branches of the Italian Armed Forces; the army, air force, and the navy ITALAIR has two flight assets, consisting of two helicopter configurations ready to operate on a daily basis. One is in a multi-task configuration, prepared to transport passengers, conducts air patrols over the area of operations, conducts observations and reconnaissance along the Blue Line in the area of operations, and, if requested, assist fire-fighting operations in cooperation with the Lebanese Armed Forces.

                                The second helicopter configuration is designed for Casevac and Medevac or casualty and medical evacuations. ITALAIR has conducted more than 1,700 emergency flights, transporting the sick and injured and stands ready to provide its service day or night, seven days a week.

                                One of the Casevac/Medivac helicopters has the capability to take off within 30 minutes and comes manned with a French aero-medical team, in another example of joint efforts in UNIFIL.

                                But the thirty plus years of service have not all passed smoothly for ITALAIR. Tragedy has struck more than once. In 1980, four helicopters were destroyed in an attack. In 1986, one helicopter was shot down near Saida, where its crew was kidnapped, but later released. And in August 1997, an accident on the ground resulted in the death of the helicopter’s crew and passengers, where four Italians and one Irishman lost their lives.

                                But there have also been many good times. At the ITALAIR Club, one is surrounded by its history, good cappuccinos and lots of human interaction. Dozens of plaques and pictures of soldiers, captains, and colonels, who have served in ITALAIR, decorate the walls of the club. They are a reminder of those who came, served and left and have over time contributed to the rich history of this support unit and task force.

                                UNIFIL’s current Italian Contingent Commander and ITALAIR Task Force Chief, Col Giacomo Lipari , speaks fondly of Club ITALAIR, where, as he put it, “we get together to relax and chat”. He adds with a smile: “Why don’t we solve a critical situation over a cup of cappuccino, as the Old Italian saying goes?”

                                ITALAIR Chief of Operations, Captain Gianluca Carofalo, joins the conversation by telling the story of the olive tree and Col Enzo Venturini. “He [Venturini] planted this olive tree in the old ITALAIR compound in 1995, when he was the commander and left the country when he finished his mandate. His wife told me, when she learned I was coming to serve in UNIFIL in 2008, that her husband planted an olive tree here. So upon my arrival I searched for and found it.” Capt Carofalo tells this story with affection and compassion.

                                “Enzo’s wife asked us if we could put a plate on her husband’s olive tree, saying ‘the deep roots can bear all the winds’, in remembrance of her husband, who had passed away on a mission,” he said.
                                Col Venturini’s olive tree was replanted in the ITALAIR’s new compound, as a symbol of continuity with the colleagues who have since left and for those who are yet to come and carry on the legacy of UNIFIL’s unsung hero, ITALAIR.


                                One of the unsung heroes of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon is, incidentally, a support service. Established in 1979, just one year after UNIFIL itself was established, ITALAIR or Italian Air is one of the oldest units in UNIFIL. With over three decades of continuous service, ITALAIR has been a witness to much of UNIFIL and south Lebanon's history, not to mention its own accomplishments, hardships, losses, and lessons learned. ITALAIR was established in July 1979 as an aerial support unit for UNIFIL's operations in south Lebanon, and it got started with just one helicopter.
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