Irish soldier serving as UN peacekeeper in Lebanon killed in convoy attack

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An Irish soldier serving as a UN peacekeeper in Lebanon has been killed after his convoy vehicle came under attack.

Private Seán Rooney, from Newtoncunningham, Donegal, died after the armoured car he was in came under fire Wednesday night. The Irish Defence Forces confirmed his family had been informed of his death.

Another soldier injured in the attack remains in critical condition, having undergone surgery. Two other peacekeepers were treated for minor injuries.

The soldiers were part of the 333-strong 121st Infantry Battalion that was deployed in November to south Lebanon as part of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

A convoy of two armoured vehicles en route to Beirut came under fire at around 9.15pm Irish time on Wednesday night.

All four soldiers injured in the attack were taken to Raee Hospital, near Sidon, following the incident. The peacekeeper who suffered fatal injuries was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital.

Four other soldiers in the convoy were uninjured in the attack.

Irish defence minister Simon Coveney said that two armoured vehicles effectively got separated during a standard run from their command in the south to Beirut.

“One of them got surrounded by a hostile mob – I think that’s the only way you could describe them – and shots were fired and unfortunately one of our peacekeepers was killed,” he said.

Lebanese social media accounts shared a video purportedly showing the immediate aftermath of the incident where a mangled UNIFIL car could be seen on its side with a wounded soldier in front of it. Mr Coveney said he was aware of the clips but said they were not yet verified.

Andrea Tenenti, Unifil’s spokesperson, told The Independent the incident took place in the village of Al-Aqbiya “just outside UNIFIL’s area of operations in south Lebanon”. He said that “details are sparse and conflicting” but that he understands one of the cars overturned.

“We are coordinating with the Lebanese Armed Forces, and have launched an investigation to determine exactly what happened,” the statement read. “We offer our deepest condolences to the friends, family, and colleagues of the peacekeeper who died.”

“We are hopeful for a full and fast recovery for those injured. Our thoughts are also with the local civilians who may have been injured or frightened in the incident.”

The Irish Defence Forces said eight soldiers had been in the two-car convoy at the time of the incident.

Thursday’s death is the first time a UNIFIL soldier has been killed in Lebanon since 2007 when three Colombian and three Spanish soldiers in the international force were hit by a bomb blast.

It is also not the first time Irish peacekeepers have been attacked.

In January, a UNIFIL convoy came under attack by unknown perpetrators in the southern town of Bint Jbeil. At the time the UN said vehicles were “vandalised and official items were stolen”.

It followed a similar attack on Finnish peacekeepers in December 2021.

About 13,000 UN peacekeepers are stationed in Lebanon, where the interim force has managed a ceasefire with Israel and was originally created to oversee the withdrawal of Israeli troops after a 1978 invasion.

It was later expanded in Lebanon under a UN-brokered truce after the month-long war between Israel and Hezbollah militants in 2006.

Hezbollah offered its condolences on Thursday and said it was not involved in the tragedy.

Senior Hezbollah official Wafiq Safa said the soldier’s death came after an “unintentional incident that took place between the residents of Al-Aqbieh and individuals from the Irish unit” and urged the party not be “inserted” into the incident.

At least 47 UNIFIL have lost their lives in Lebanon since 1978. Chief of staff of the Irish Defence Forces, lieutenant general Sean Clancy, expressed shock and sadness at the “tragic event”.

“Our thoughts are with his family, his friends and his fellow peacekeepers from the 121st Infantry Battalion,” he said.

“We have one of our medical officers currently at Raee Hospital and we will ensure that our personnel get the best possible care. Our focus now is to ensure the safety and continued support for all our personnel deployed in Lebanon.”

The Defence Forces said a full investigation will commence into the incident.

The 121st Infantry Battalion is part of a multinational battalion, comprising Irish, Maltese, Polish and Hungarian personnel.

Irish president Michael D Higgins offered his “deepest condolences” to the family of the dead soldier.

“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,” he said.

“A life lost serving the people of Ireland, serving the United Nations, and serving all those wishing for peace in our shared world.”

Irish premier Micheal Martin said: “I want to express the heartfelt sorrow of the government of Ireland at the loss of a young person serving overseas with the United Nations.

Defence minister Coveney said the soldier was “a young man who has lost his life in service of Ireland and of the UN” and called it a “shocking and tragic incident”.

“Essentially what happened, we think, was two armoured personnel vehicles were travelling from our main camp in southern Lebanon to Beirut. It was a standard administrative run, as it’s called in military terms,” he told RTE Radio.

“And the two armoured vehicles effectively got separated. One of them got surrounded by a hostile mob – I think that’s the only way you could describe them – and shots were fired and unfortunately, one of our peacekeepers was killed.

“This is a very serious incident. We haven’t had a fatality in the Defence Forces on peacekeeping missions for over two decades.”

Mr Coveney, who is currently in New York for a UN Security Council meeting, said he intends to meet UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to demand a “full investigation” into the incident.

“I will return to Ireland this evening after I meet with the UN secretary-general to discuss the loss of our peacekeeper and the full investigation that must now follow,” he said.

UNIFIL said it was coordinating with the Lebanese army and had launched an investigation but details remained “sparse and conflicting”.

The UN’s special coordinator for Lebanon, Joanna Wronecka, said on Twitter: “A quick [and] thorough investigation to determine the facts of this tragic incident is crucial.”

Mr Coveney also said he is aware of video clips and images shared on social media reportedly of the incident, but said it is not clear if they have been verified.