An Irish soldier has died in south Lebanon after a vehicle carrying four soldiers was attacked on Wednesday night.
The soldier was named by the Defence Forces as Private Seán Rooney, who had family links with Dundalk, County Louth, and Newtowncunningham, County Donegal.
He was serving in Lebanon as part of the Irish contribution to United Nations peacekeeping operations in the Middle Eastern country.
The 23-year-old had been in the army for almost four years and was a member of the 27th Infantry Battalion in Dundalk. Private Rooney’s father also served in the Defence Forces and died in service several years ago. It is understood two of Private Rooney’s uncles are also members of the Defence Forces, the Irish Times reported.
The fatal incident happened in Al-Aqbieh, just outside the UN-affiliated group’s area of operations, when a vehicle carrying four personnel was stopped by locals and surrounded.
Stated the Irish Times report: "It and another armoured SUV became separated while travelling on an “administrative run” from the Irish Unifil base to Beirut. The convoy was bringing two soldiers to the airport so they could return to Ireland on compassionate leave due to bereavements. The two-and-a-half hour drive north along the coast is typically considered safe and undertaken regularly by Defence Forces personnel."
The news agency AFP reported that an Irish peacekeeper had died from a bullet wound to the head after seven projectiles pierced the vehicle in which he was travelling, citing Lebanese judicial sources.
The report stated that one vehicle, which had UN markings, entered Al-Aqbieh village, an area controlled by militants Hizbullah. It encountered a group of locals and came under small-arms fire. The vehicle attempted to escape and appears to have overturned while trying to do so.
A second Irish soldier required surgery after the incident and was said to be in a stable but critical condition in a UN-controlled hospital in Hamud on Thursday. Two other colleagues travelling in the vehicle suffered minor injuries. The four soldiers travelling in the second vehicle were not injured and have been accounted for, the Defence Forces said.
Hizbullah, which has objected to the scope of the UN mission’s activities in recent months, denied responsibility for what it described as an “unintentional incident."
The United Nations Security Council, which Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney is this week attending, held a minutes silence for Private Rooney and all other peacekeepers killed in UN service.
Another Irish soldier, Shane Kearney (22) from Killeagh, Co Cork was wounded in the attack.
The Irish Times reported that Private Rooney's death is the first of a Defence Forces member in combat in 23 years, and the first on a peacekeeping mission since 2003.
Irish soldiers have been in Lebanon as part of the UN UNIFIL peacekeeping operation that dates back to the 1970s.
In May, Taoiseach Micheál Martin visited Lebanon to pay tribute to the 47 Irish soldiers who had died while serving on peacekeeping missions in the south of the country over the years
President Michael D Higgins, in a statement, said: “It is with the deepest sorrow that I was this morning informed of the news of the death of a member of the Defence Forces serving on a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Lebanon.
"As a people, we take great pride in our unbroken record of peacekeeping with the United Nations. However, we must never forget the dangers that come with this work, or how the members of our Defence Forces serving on peacekeeping missions abroad risk their lives every day in order to build and maintain peace in conflict zones across the world.
"As President of Ireland and Supreme Commander of the Defence Forces, it is with a heavy heart, and conscious of the great loss it will represent to them, that I offer my deepest condolences to the family, colleagues and friends of the member of the Defence Forces who has lost their life. A life lost serving the people of Ireland, serving the United Nations, and serving all those wishing for peace in our shared world.
"May I also wish a speedy recovery to those other members of the Defence Forces injured in the incident. Our thoughts are with them at this time.”
