A draft document on the award of extra medals to veterans of the famous Siege at Jadotville warned it could “re-ignite” a lot of pain and angst amongst survivors of the battle.
The record – which was prepared for Defence Minister Simon Coveney – warned that the department was coming under considerable pressure to award additional medals to a select number of men from ‘A’ Company.
However, it cautioned that there was no legal basis to support the award and that there was no available evidence on the original deliberations from the 1960s about the award of medals.
The draft submission also warned that it could have a knock-on effect, particularly for soldiers who were “nominated but overlooked” for awards in the intervening years.
It also said it could cause further “pain and angst” among the veterans, all of whom had been presented with an award called ‘An Bonn Jadotville’ in 2017.
You can read the full set of records below: