Congo war hero from Cloonaglasha

A BATTLE-HARDENED hero from the brutal Congo civil war, and subsequent UN military operations in strife-torn Cyprus, retired Irish soldier William (Billy) Keane has tears in his eyes when he talks about escaping alive from the bloody Siege of Jadotville in 1961.
The bravery of Billy, who was one of 156 Irish soldiers who held out for almost a week against overwhelming odds of over 3,000 Congolese rebels, French mercenary fighters and heavily armed Belgian settlers, killing over 300 of their attackers, has been immortalised in a film and book entitled The Siege of Jadotville.
In this interview with The Tuam Herald Billy talks about the way they were shamefully abandoned by UN chiefs during the brutal battle and how he thought he would never see home again.
“The actions of our company commander saved us all from coming back home in boxes. The day before that our commander, Comdt Pat Quinlan, was going for a conference in Leopoldville and fearing the worst, he ordered that trenches be dug that Saturday.
“He was the first Irish commander to order that Irish troops dig trenches around their positions during UN duties in any foreign land and that was the difference between us being saved and our bodies coming home in boxes,” said Billy.
“We were all young lads, 19 to 24, and the first thought that went through my mind when the battle started was would I ever see home again,” he added.
The 77-year-old from Cloonaglasha, Kilconly, has lived in Mullingar for most of his life and is the third eldest in a family of 13. His wife Mary (Mollie) and some of his siblings and extended family were present when he, and others from the siege in the Congo, were honoured as UN war heroes at a ceremony in Claremorris recently.

Read the full feature in this week's edition of The Tuam Herald