Decision on sending Irish troops to Darfur due soon

A DECISION on whether Irish troops will be sent to Darfur as part of the United Nations peacekeeping effort will be made in the next few weeks.

The UN recently secured a mandate to deploy a force of 26,000 in the troubled Sudanese region in a bid to protect local civilians, and Ireland may be asked to contribute to the deployment — possibly via the new European Union battle groups.

A request sent to all UN countries is being considered by the Department of Defence and will end up before the cabinet.