Fifty Army Rangers will be deployed to Chad next Thursday to join a tough peace enforcement mission in the troubled central African state.
The Defence Forces confirmed tonight the elite military wing will be in the country to assess the security situation in advance of the deployment of the full force.
Defence Minister Willie O'Dea met Lt Gen Pat Nash, the Irish general with overall command of the Eufor mission, in Paris for a briefing today.
Deployment of the 14 nation EU force began yesterday with Swedish Special Forces and French logistical units arriving at the reopened N'Djamena airport.
The 50 Army Rangers have been on standby for more than a week after fierce fighting between government and rebel forces in Chad. About 200 EU troops, including eight Irish soldiers, are already on the ground, having arrived prior to the rebel offensive.
The Irish troops will fly into N'Djamena next Thursday and face a difficult 900km journey to the east by land across Chad's arid interior to Abeche and Goz Beida.
"They will immediately set about patrolling the region, identifying suitable base camp areas and assessing the prevailing security situation in advance of the arrival of the main body of Irish troops," a Defence Forces spokesman said.
"The focus of the mission remains the creation of a safe and secure environment in Chad."
About 400,000 refugees from Sudan's war-torn Darfur region are crammed into camps along the border.
Irish troops will be tasked with protecting civilians but rather than their normal peacekeeping role they have been given peace enforcement rights. If fired upon they are allowed to fire back.
France is contributing the largest number of troops to the 3,700-strong EUFor contingent under the overall command of Lt. Gen. Pat Nash.
A two-day battle for N'Djamena, which saw the airport closed, ended late on Sunday after rebels withdrew from the Chadian capital. The fighting had delayed the deployment of the EU mission.
PA