IRISH TROOPS serving with the EU mission to Chad will not be targeted by rebels fighting to oust the country's president as they are no longer considered a hostile force, representatives of the Chadian rebel alliance have told The Irish Times.
The news came as the Minister for Defence Willie O'Dea and Defence Forces Chief of Staff Lieut Gen Dermot Earley decided to proceed with their visit to Chad despite the growing unrest. They were scheduled to leave on the Government jet from Baldonnel at 5.30am this morning.
The rebels, who claim to be advancing on the Chadian capital N'Djamena for their second offensive against President Idriss Deby in six months, said the EU force, known as Eufor, had demonstrated its neutrality since deploying to eastern Chad.
"We congratulate Eufor soldiers for their courageous attitude and neutrality. Eufor has showed its strict neutrality in this conflict and therefore we have no problem with them," rebel spokesman Abderaman Koulamallah said. "If Eufor continues to be neutral, they will have no problem from us." Earlier this year Mr Koulamallah and his associates told The Irish Times the rebels would consider Irish soldiers a hostile force if they deployed alongside French troops as part of Eufor.
In a telephone interview last night, Mr Koulamallah said he was speaking on behalf of the rebels who clashed with Chadian government forces in eastern Chad on Saturday. Irish troops who were patrolling the area came under fire during the fighting.
"Eufor was definitely not the intended target of the shots," he said. "These were perhaps loose shots . . . We are very happy with the stance [Eufor] took yesterday, because it took a more defensive stance not an offensive one . . . The shooting which took place does not in any away compromise the relations between us, which are relations of mutual respect."
The Irish Times understands that up to 800 heavily armed rebels travelling in pick-ups were involved in the fighting, which erupted on Saturday morning four kilometres from the town of Goz Beida."The engagement was serious enough in that it was ongoing for four to five hours," said a source.
The Irish patrol returned warning shots after it came under RPG fire near Djabal camp, which shelters Chadians displaced by local unrest. "This incident underlines the complexity of the Eufor operation and demonstrates the importance of the presence of a professional, multi-national force to meet this challenge," said Comdt Dan Harvey, a spokesman for Eufor in Paris.
Mr O'Dea and Lieut Gen Earley will meet the Chadian defence minister in the N'Djamena today. Tomorrow they will fly to Goz Beida to meet Irish troops and to visit refugee camps, before returning home on Wednesday.