Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this very important issue. I am deeply concerned by the rising tensions along the Israel-Lebanon border. It is vital all parties work to de-escalate the situation. We strongly support international efforts to mediate a resolution between Israel and Hezbollah. Since October, I have raised my concerns and the need for urgent de-escalation on several occasions with regional leaders and members of the Lebanese Government, including during my visit to Lebanon in May.

My Department has undertaken significant contingency planning to prepare for a possible consular crisis as a result of an escalation in Lebanon. In October, my Department updated its travel advice to strongly advise against all travel to Lebanon. We continue to advise Irish citizens to leave Lebanon by commercial means while it is still possible to do so. We reiterated this advice earlier this week.

The Department has undertaken an extensive review of our citizens' register for Lebanon, including an outreach exercise to establish contact with citizens, confirm their stratus as present in Lebanon and reiterate our travel advice. We are in regular contact with those registered Irish citizens who remain in Lebanon. Of the Irish citizens remaining, many are long-term residents and do not plan to leave unless the situation deteriorates significantly. This does not include Irish military personnel assigned through UN tasking as UNIFIL. An evacuation of civilians, including Irish citizens, from Lebanon is likely to be a complex and difficult operation and will require extensive co-operation with key partners.

My Department is working closely with EU and other partners to exchange information and co-ordinate our consular response to emergencies, including for Lebanon. As part of our contingency planning for the evacuation of Irish citizens from Lebanon, my Department has also been working with colleagues in the United Kingdom, with whom we expect to co-operate closely in the event of an evacuation.

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