The United Nations (UN) must make its reports into the death of Private Seán Rooney available to his inquest, a solicitor representing his family has said.
The 24-year-old, from Newtowncunningham, Co Donegal, was killed while serving in Lebanon when his UN peacekeeping convoy was attacked in 2022.
The shooting near the town of Al-Aqbiya in the south of Lebanon, a stronghold of Hizbullah, resulted in the death of Pte Rooney while Trooper Shane Kearney (22) was badly wounded.
Trooper Kearney, from Killeagh, Co Cork, was medically evacuated from Lebanon to Ireland for treatment for a serious head wound.
Taoiseach Simon Harris and Tánaiste Micheál Martin have expressed concern about “slow progress” in Lebanese court proceedings into the matter.
One of the suspects who was arrested over the killing was released on bail last year due to a medical condition, while Mr Harris expressed frustration that other suspects remain at large.
At a hearing of Dublin District Coroner’s Court on Tuesday, a solicitor representing Pte Rooney’s family said he was a “a courageous soldier, a formidable friend, but most importantly – a much-loved son and a future husband”.
Darragh Mackin said issues have arisen around restrictions on the disclosure of information to the inquest from the UN.
He said the UN had an obligation to the client’s family, Ireland and the international community to make information available.
Mr Mackin said: “Full and frank disclosure from the UN must not be a request, it must be a right.”
He said the “elephant in the room” was 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.
Mr Mackin also said there had been a report 10 months prior to the incident that raised concerns about the integrity of the UN vehicles.
He said there are “question marks about the efficiency and effectiveness” of the operation, as he said the UN “must co-operate with this investigation”.
Mr Mackin also said there had been a “noxious narrative” that Pte Rooney had taken a wrong turn on the day.
He said the Rooney family wanted answers from the inquest, and said that it might be asked how a 24-year-old soldier with no UN driving licence had ended up 13-16 kilometres away from the convoy, having never travelled the route before.
Earlier in the case management hearing, senior coroner Dr Myra Cullinane said it was a “very complex” case and that she had been given information from An Garda Síochána in relation to the “tragic events”.
However, she said there had been issues around the disclosure of the UN reports.
She said the UN should be designated as an interested party in the case and requested assistance from Remy Farrell, representing the Defence Forces and the Minister for Defence, in contacting relevant people within the international body.
Mr Farrell also said he had been specifically instructed to “offer heartfelt condolences to the Rooney family”.
Pte Rooney’s mother, Natasha McCloskey, and her husband Paul were present for the proceedings.
Mr Farrell told the court that the family had been able to look at a redacted version of the report from the investigation on the ground but were not allowed to keep a copy.
He added that issues arose with the UN disclosing the report because it had been designated as confidential by the body.
He said the report from the UN board of inquiry has not been seen by the family.
Mr Farrell said the “restrictions” on the reports came from the UN.
He also outlined to Dr Cullinane recent correspondence in which the UN raised questions to the department about what measures could be put in place to limit interested parties accessing the documents and stop them from being made publicly available.
Mr Farrell questioned whether such measures could be identified and if the court would be minded to restrict access in such a fashion.
Dr Cullinane noted that it was a public inquest and she would have to consult the Coroners Act.
Mr Mackin welcomed the development that the UN would be designated as an interested party.
He said lessons need to be learnt for his client, Ireland and the wider international community.
“Private Rooney paid the ultimate price. He paid the price of his own life to save the lives of his three fellow soldiers.
“He is a hero to his family, to those soldiers whose lives he saved and he is a hero to Ireland.”
Dr Cullinane said she wanted to “echo the eloquent remarks of Mr Mackin”, adding that the fact the family had “lost their wonderful son” was central in her mind.
Discussions relating to the scope of the inquest and witness statements were deferred pending the full arrival of documentation available to the inquest.
The inquest will sit again for mention on Friday, September 20th.
