Lebanese army commander pays tribute to Private Seán Rooney and pledges pursuit of perpetrators

General Joseph Aoun said the Lebanese army will continue to investigate the incident at Al-Aqibiya in which the 23-year-old peacekeeper from Newtowncunningham was shot dead.

The young soldier was killed when the convoy in which he was travelling was attacked between Tyre and Sidon as it travelled to Beirut.

The Lebanese commander-in-chief met Major General Aroldo Lázaro, Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and the leadership of the Irish-Polish battalion in Al-Tiri, near the Israeli border on Tuesday, December 27, to honour 'the four Irish soldiers whose vehicle was shot at in the town of Al-Aqibiya on December 14, which led to the martyrdom of the soldier Seán Cormac Rooney and the wounding of his three comrades'.

He stated: "The Irish-Polish Battalion has a long history of service within UNIFIL since 1978, during which time it offered 48 martyrs among its members. I salute the members of the battalion, the heroic peacekeepers, who are far from their homelands and their families in order to maintain peace in Lebanon and support the people of the south."

General Aoun praised the sacrifices of the UNIFIL units that work closely with the Lebanese Army to maintain security and stability in the south, and concluded by saying: "I reaffirm the continuation of cooperation between the Army and UNIFIL as a basic strategic partner, in order to implement Resolution 1701."

Resolution 1701 was a reference to the terms adopted by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in order to end the war between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006.

Major General Lázaro thanked General Aoun for the Lebanese Army's solidarity with UNIFIL, stressing that 'it will continue to perform its mission professionally within the framework of Resolution 1701 in coordination with the Lebanese army, appreciating the efforts made by the army in terms of investigating the incident'.

General Aoun, the commander of the Irish-Polish Battalion, handed over the Wounded Medal to each of the three wounded soldiers, as 'a token of loyalty and appreciation for their service and sacrifices within the framework of the peacekeeping mission that their battalion is carrying out in southern Lebanon'.

UNIFIL stated: "We appreciate LAF's efforts in investigating the incident in Al-Aqbieh and thank Gen. Aoun for his support. We all want to know the truth about what happened and see the perpetrators held accountable. We await the results of the investigation and justice for Private Rooney."

Newtowncunningham mourns as Private Seán Rooney is laid to rest