UN peacekeeper’s body arrives back in Ireland

admin January 10, 2023

The body of Irish UN peacekeeper Seán Rooney has arrived at Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel after travelling from Beirut International Airport overnight on an Air Corps aircraft.

Private Rooney, 24, was shot and killed last week when the armoured vehicle he was travelling in was attacked in a coastal village in southern Lebanon.

Private Rooney was accompanied on the flight by a number of his colleagues from the 121 Infantry Battalion, including his company commander, Commandant Brian Connolly.

His coffin, draped in the Irish Tricolour, was taken from the Air Corp CASA aircraft and carried by his comrades from the 2nd Brigade military police company based at Cathal Brugha Barracks.

Private Rooney’s mother Natasha, his fiancée Holly McConnellogue and grandfather Eugene were among those present when the aircraft landed.

The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence Micheál Martin and the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces Lieutenant General Sean Clancy were also in attendance present this morning.

Pte Rooney’s remains were reunited with his family in Baldonnel where a short prayer service was conducted.

The white coffin was driven away in a hearse accompanied by a Garda escort shortly afterwards.

A post-mortem examination is due to be carried out and Pte Rooney’s funeral is expected to take place later this week.

Seán Rooney was killed on UN peacekeeping duty

After a solemn UN ceremony at the airport yesterday, Pte Rooney’s remains were placed on an Air Corps CASA plane which stopped off in Malta for refuelling, before landing in Dublin this morning.

Pte Rooney’s colleague, Trooper Shane Kearney, 23, suffered blunt force trauma to the head in the attack, however the Irish officer commanding the 121st Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Damien Murphy said that Trooper Kearney was making progress, but remains critically injured.

Meanwhile, three separate investigations are under way into what happened last Wednesday night at the coastal village south of the city of Sidon.

Lebanese Army General Pierre Saab said at Pte Rooney’s repatriation ceremony yesterday that all of his security agencies will do their best to reveal the truth.

He said anyone who proves to be an aggressor against UNIFIL – which is totally rejected by the Lebanese people – will be punished.

The Irish Defence Forces is conducting its own investigation which will be augmented today by a team of three Military Police and a lawyer from Dublin, as well as a specialised team from An Garda Síochána.

The Garda delegation includes a Detective Superintendent and a Detective Inspector from the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation as well as a Detective Sergeant from the Garda Technical Bureau, who is a ballistics expert.

A Garda spokesperson said the delegation will also liaise with local law enforcement, and other agencies, who are investigating the incident.

Lebanese Minister for Defence Maurice Sleem visited the Irish UN headquarters this morning, to offer his condolences to the Officer Commanding, Lt Col Damien Murphy, over the killing of Pte Rooney.

Also present at the meeting at Tiri in south Lebanon was the head of the UNIFIL mission, Major General Aroldo Lázaro Sáenz.

Additional reporting Paul Cunningham



UN peacekeeper’s body arrives back in Ireland
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