A former Army private, a rugby international, a martial arts instructor and a one-time IT recruitment consultant are among nine young men who have become the latest additions to the Naval Service officers' ranks.

A double All-Ireland hurling winner who recently took command of the Army’s 1 Brigade at Collins Barracks, Cork, has been appointed Defence Forces deputy chief of staff.

The new Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces is Major General Conor O’Boyle.

Army creche facilities may lure more women into the Defence Forces, the Dáil heard today.

Thirty-one cadets are graduating from the Defence Forces Training Centre in Kildare today.

Several thousand people lined Dublin’s O’Connell Street today as Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and President Mary McAleese led commemorations to mark the 91st anniversary of the Easter Rising.

An Irish soldier was killed today in an off-road traffic accident at the Defence Forces Training Centre at the Curragh in Co Kildare.

An expert Irish defence forces team is to be deployed to the region devastated by the Asian tsunami next week, it was confirmed today.