The Irish general who commanded the EU peacekeeping mission in Chad is being awarded with the Distinguished Service Medal.

An Irish commander of the EU peacekeeping mission in Chad will receive France’s highest honour.

CONTROL of the Chad peacekeeping mission involving Irish troops was yesterday handed over to the United Nations amid growing fears of more rebel violence and a possible influx of refugees fleeing neighbouring Darfur.

Defence Minister Willie O’Dea today begins an official three-day visit to Irish troops serving in Chad.

IRISH troops in Chad will swap their EU hats for blue UN berets when the UN takes over from the EU’s peacekeeping mission there next March, Defence Minister Willie O’Dea has said.

THE EU force in Chad is bracing itself for a tough second half of their tour, with trouble expected from rebel groups and bandits.

IRISH troops in Chad were monitoring the security situation in the troubled African country last night following an explosion in the capital, N’djamena.

IRISH troops have had more than 200 encounters with armed bandits and have come under fire while defending refugee camps in Chad, the mid-term review of the mission to the embattled African state has been told.

SENDING in troops to protect refugees and aid agencies at the very heart of a humanitarian crisis may seem like an obvious move, but for Ireland and Europe it has been a very controversial one.

BOTH the UN and Javier Solana, the EU’s foreign policy chief, have defended the actions of Irish troops in Chad when armed groups tried to attack refugee camps and NGO compounds at the weekend.

IRISH troops came under fire from rebel groups in Chad where they are protecting refugee camps close to the Darfur border.

The head of the Irish Defence Forces says the peacekeeping mission to Chad is one of the most important ever undertaken by the State.

A HUGE shipment of army weapons and essential supplies to equip Irish troops in Chad is scheduled to land in west Africa tomorrow.

THE Irish army general heading the EU mission to Chad yesterday said troops were well-received by villagers there so far but the country was still volatile.

The Defence Forces were tonight preparing a major logistical operation to transport supplies and equipment to the elite Army Ranger unit in Chad.

Minister for Defence Willie O'Dea will today seek a definite date to deploy Irish troops to Chad when he visits the mission's headquarters in Paris.

DEFENCE Minister Willie O’Dea will meet military chiefs in Paris today ahead of theexpected deployment of Irish and international troops to Chad next week.

The deployment of Irish troops to Chad faced a further delay tonight after it emerged rebel troops were closing in on the capital forcing the closure of the local airport.

AFTER months of frustration and haggling the EU’s military operation in Chad and the Central African Republic will finally be launched, though the operational commander of the Irish contingent Lt Gen Pat Nash has warned there are still gaps.

IRISH troops will be on their way to Africa within weeks on a European Union mission to protect refugees fleeing bloodshed in the Darfur region of Sudan.

Some 400 Irish troops will be finally deployed to Chad at the end of the month, the Minister for Defence Willie O’Dea confirmed today.

TAOISEACH Bertie Ahern yesterday met Irish troops engaged in last-minute training ahead of an EU peacekeeping mission to war-torn Chad.

SOME 400 Irish troops are to be deployed to the war-torn country of Chad in the most expensive mission ever undertaken by the army, following cabinet approval yesterday.

The EU mission to Chad will be delayed for at least a month if the member states cannot come up with 10 helicopters by tomorrow.

The Dáil will be asked to approve the deployment of hundreds of Irish troops to the Darfur conflict in the next few weeks.

THE Taoiseach was represented at the funeral yesterday of the Co Limerick college graduate who drowned in a holiday accident in Spain last week.

UP to 10,000 people are expected on the streets of Cork later today in a bid to break an Irish dancing world record.

IF Andrea Bocelli’s star could have been eclipsed last night, the weather would have been the only contender.

Brendan Mooney

CORK’S Collins Barracks will tomorrow become the first Irish army barracks to open a military museum to the public.