Irish troops in Lebanon are 'safe' as Israel launches ground invasion 

A man documents the damaged buildings at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut's southern suburb on Tuesday. Picture: AP/Hassan Ammar

Irish troops serving their peacekeeping missions in Lebanon are "accounted for and safe", the Defence Forces has said. 

Intense fighting has since erupted between the Israeli military and Hezbollah after Israel launched a ground invasion on Monday night.