Irish NATO role not explained

MINISTER for Defence Willie O’Dea has stated he has received assurances concerning the safety of seven members of the Irish Defence Forces serving with the NATO force in Afghanistan.

This statement seems designed to protect Minister O’Dea in the event of one of these soldiers being seriously injured, due to the increasing violence in Kabul. Asking Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Dermot Earley to provide these assurances puts him in an almost impossible situation.

Amazingly, the Department of Defence is quoted as stating that Irish soldiers “had been supplied with vehicles fitted with electronic devices that would help repel roadside bombs”.