Turkish peacekeepers arrive in Beirut

Two military ships docked in Beirut's harbour at 9am local time.

Officials said the ships were carrying 95 soldiers and civilian engineers, as well as 46 trucks, four armoured personnel carriers and several bulldozers and other machinery.

More soldiers were scheduled to arrive later in the day, bringing the number of Turkish soldiers and civilian engineers in Lebanon to 261.

The troops were expected to deploy near the southern port city of Tyre to help rebuild bridges and roads damaged in the 34-day war between Hezbollah and Israel.

The conflict ended on August 14 after a UN-brokered cease-fire resolution that called for an expanded international peacekeeping force to create a weapons-free zone in the south.

A Turkish government spokesman said earlier this month that the total number of Turkish personnel in Lebanon would ultimately reach 681, including sailors and engineers. A vanguard of seven Turkish military officers arrived in Beirut earlier this week, and a Turkish frigate is already helping patrol Lebanese waters.

Turkey is NATO's only predominantly Muslim member, and the country has close ties to Israel and Arab states. Its contribution to the peacekeeping force was met with opposition in the Turkish parliament, where some politicians feared Turkish troops would be drawn into fighting against fellow Muslims to protect Israel.

Armenians in Lebanon also protested Turkish participation in the peacekeeping force, known as Unifil, because they blame Turkey's Ottoman rulers for the mass killing of Armenians in the early 20th century.

Thousands of people from Lebanon's 80,000-100,000 strong Armenian community rallied in downtown Beirut on October 12 to protest Turkey's planned participation. Many of Lebanon's Armenian residents fled Turkey and are haunted by memories of what they considered an Armenian genocide there.

Turkish peacekeeping troops have served in Bosnia and Kosovo and have led operations in Somalia and Afghanistan. Irish Examiner