ALLEGATIONS by an Israeli Defence Forces general that Irish peace keeping troops sympathised with the Lebanese terror group Hizbullah were last night "rejected out of hand" by the Minister for Defence, Mr Barrett.
Irish UNIFIL soldiers serving in South Lebanon acted in a "completely neutral and impartial manner", he insisted.
"We have been serving there since 1978 and have an impeccable record. We are regarded as one of the best peace keeping forces, a view which I wholeheartedly support," said Mr Barrett.
The Irish troops operate under a UN mandate and are answerable to a force commissioner appointed by the UN, and there have been no complaints made to the UN about our impartiality or, otherwise."
The Minister made his comments after it emerged that Brig Gen David Tzur of the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) liaison unit had accused the Irish battalion of effectively sheltering Hizbullah in its area of operation.
He told a six member Irish delegation which visited Israel and Gaza last month that the IDF felt the Irish troops had developed too close a relationship with the local population.
It was claimed that the Israeli backed South Lebanese Army resented what was seen as a partial stance by the Irish peace keepers, who made an unprecedented number of formal complaints about IDF close firing into their area, intended to hit recognised terrorist targets.
A call for the Israeli ambassador to Ireland to be summoned before the Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs was made at the committee on Wednesday by Fianna Fail's Dr Jim McDaid. However, it was decided to await the views of the Minister for Defence before a decision was taken.
Last night, Mr Barrett said he "rejected out of hand" the criticism and defended the Irish peace keepers' impartiality.
Irish UNIFIL troops are serving for the 19th successive year in Tibnin, where a new battalion takes over every six months. More than 600 soldiers are stationed there, said a spokesman for the Department of Defence.