Defence forces too ‘stretched’ to commit to UN force

FOREIGN Affairs Minister Dermot Ahern yesterday said violence would not resolve the crisis in the Middle East, but again made clear the Government’s reluctance to commit troops to a UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon.

Mr Ahern said that if the conflict continued unchecked, it could lead to a “third world war”.

The Government was remaining in direct contact with all governments in the region “to encourage a diplomatic solution”, he added.