A leading Irish soldier has been appointed to head a key UN Middle East mission.
Maj Gen Carl Dodd, the Deputy Chief of Staff (Operations) of the Defence Forces, will head the UN Truce Supervision Organisation (UNTSO). The appointment was announced yesterday by the UN Secretary-General, Mr Kofi Annan.
The UNTSO is based in Jerusalem, where he reports on Good Friday.
UNTSO, the UN's first peace- keeping operation, was established in June 1948 when military observers were deployed to Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. Their task was to monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating and to assist in subsequent peacekeeping operations.
Maj Gen Dodd (59) is a native of Mallow, Co Cork, and lives in Newbridge, Co Kildare.