Taoiseach welcomes that mother of peacekeeper killed in Lebanon can sue UN

By Gráinne Ní Aodha, PA

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has welcomed that the mother of an Irish peacekeeper killed in Lebanon has been given permission to sue the UN.

Sean Rooney, 24, from Newtowncunningham in Co Donegal, was killed when a convoy of Irish troops serving with a UN peacekeeping force was ambushed and fired upon on December 14th, 2022.

The shooting happened near the town of Al-Aqbiya in the south of Lebanon, a stronghold of Hezbollah.

Pte Rooney, from the 121 Infantry Battalion of the Defence Forces, was killed.

On Tuesday, his mother Natasha was granted permission by the High Court in Dublin to sue the UN.

Asked about the granting of permission to sue the UN, the Taoiseach welcomed developments.

“Natasha Rooney has gone through a terrible trauma in respect of the murder of her son Sean and we await the outcome of the trial in Lebanon,” Mr Martin said.

“We have been very unhappy at the pace in which that trial has taken place, it’s been slow, and we’re looking for full accountability.

“We believe Hezbollah was primarily responsible for the death of Sean, but of course full accountability and full transparency is owed to the Rooney family, so I welcome developments.”

Pte Rooney’s family has pressed the UN to make crucial reports linked to the soldier’s death available to his inquest, being conducted by the Dublin District Senior Coroner Dr Myra Cullinane.

The court heard that the UN had carried out reports which had not yet been made available to the inquest. These include an investigation carried out on the ground as well as a subsequent UN board of inquiry report.

The hearing was told there had also been a report 10 months prior to the incident that raised concerns about the integrity of the UN vehicles involved.

However, they were originally told there were issues around disclosing these reports.