DUBLIN, Oct 2, 2007 (AFP) - The Irish government has approved the appointment of Major General Pat Nash to serve as operational commander of a 3,500-strong UN-EU peacekeeping force in Chad, a spokeswoman said Tuesday.

An army spokesman said the force approved by the UN Security Council will monitor camps accommodating about 250,000 people who have fled the violence in Sudan's Darfur region and about 130,000 internally displaced people.

LONDON, Oct 2, 2007 (AFP) - Liverpool and England midfielder Steven Gerrard on Tuesday visited the hospital bedside of a schoolboy after knocking him down in his car, leaving the footballer shocked.

Gerrard gave 10-year-old Jamie Hellawell a signed England shirt and football boots at the Alder Hey Hospital, a day after colliding with him in his Bentley near Southport, Merseyside in northwest England.

EVORA, Portugal, Sept 28, 2007 (AFP) - French Defence Minister Herve Morin urged his EU counterparts Friday to contribute troops to a new peacekeeping force for Chad and the Central African Republic.

'What we want is a truly European mission,' said Morin, whose country is expected to provide 1,000-1,500 troops to the UN-mandated operation expected to deploy up to 4,000 soldiers.

'The Irish said yesterday (Thursday) that they would send 300 men,' he said, ahead of two days of informal talks with his EU counterparts in Evora, central Portugal.

EVORA, Portugal, Sept 28, 2007 (AFP) - French Defence Minister Herve Morin will Friday urge his European Union counterparts to take part in an EU-UN peacekeeping force being prepared for Chad and the Central African Republic.

Morin 'will try to speak to as many of his counterparts as possible about the possible participation of their countries in this operation,' at an EU defence meeting in Evora, central Portugal, a French diplomat said.

UNITED NATIONS, Aug 28, 2007 (AFP) - The UN Security Council has expressed its support for a joint United Nations-European Union security force for eastern Chad and the northeastern region of the Central Africa Republic in order to protect civilians affected by strife in neighboring Darfur.

The Security Council 'welcomes ... (a) multidimensional presence' in the region, said a statement Monday referring to the proposal for a UN police force backed by EU troops suggested by UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon earlier this month.

UNITED NATIONS, Aug 16, 2007 (AFP) - UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Thursday recommended the UN Security Council authorize a joint United Nations-European Union force for eastern Chad and the northeastern region of the Central African Republic.

The secretary general presented a report with his revised concept for deploying a multinational force to the African region to protect hundreds of thousands of civilians threatened by conflict in western Sudan's Darfur region.

TOULOUSE, France, July 24, 2007 (AFP) - French customs stopped and searched a car from the Astana cycling team at a tollgate near here on Tuesday.

Astana - financed by the Kazakh government - had withdrawn from the Tour de France earlier on Tuesday after the revelation that their lead rider Alexandre Vinokourov had been found to be blood doping.

Police later turned up at their hotel and raided their premises and team bus leaving with several black bags while Vinokourov had already left leaving by the back door of the hotel.