Judge accuses Hezbollah of killing UN peacekeeper
Irish soldier was shot dead in vehicle ambush in southern Lebanon in December last year
A Lebanese military tribunal has formally accused five members of Hezbollah and the allied Amal movement of killing an Irish UN peacekeeper in an ambush in southern Lebanon.
Private Sean Rooney, 23, was killed on Dec. 15 last year in the first fatal attack on UNIFIL forces since 2015. The soldier was shot in the head as he tried to drive his stricken vehicle to safety. Four others were injured when the vehicle overturned.
Preliminary investigations concluded that Hezbollah supporter
Mohammad Ayad fired the fatal shots. He was handed over by Hezbollah and is now in custody. The attackers fled, and warrants were issued for their arrest.
Military tribunal judge Fadi Sawan called for the prosecution of Ayad and four other fugitives: Ali Hassan Khalifa, Ali Hassan Sleiman, Hussein Hassan Sleiman, and
Mustafa Hassan Sleiman. He recommended sentences ranging from 20 years in jail to the death penalty. Lebanese law applies to crimes committed against UNIFIL troops under an agreement between the state and the UN.
The judge’s report said the attack began when the UNIFIL vehicle lost its way while traveling to Beirut. The soldiers appealed for help by radio as they were “trapped in an ambush.”
Attackers surrounded the stricken vehicle and broke the rear window. Pt. Rooney, the driver, tried to get the vehicle to safety but was shot in the back of the head and killed.
Hezbollah has denied involvement in the killing, and called it an “unintentional incident” between local residents and UNIFIL. At the time, Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said he did not accept Hezbollah’s assurances.