Suspect Arrested in Killing of UN Peacekeeper in Lebanon

18 December 2022, Lebanon, Beirut: The coffin of Irish peacekeeper serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) Seán Rooney, who was dead earlier this month in South Lebanon, is carried by his colleagues during a repatriation ceremony at Beirut airport before being taken by an Irish military plane back home. (dpa)
18 December 2022, Lebanon, Beirut: The coffin of Irish peacekeeper serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) Seán Rooney, who was dead earlier this month in South Lebanon, is carried by his colleagues during a repatriation ceremony at Beirut airport before being taken by an Irish military plane back home. (dpa)
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Suspect Arrested in Killing of UN Peacekeeper in Lebanon

18 December 2022, Lebanon, Beirut: The coffin of Irish peacekeeper serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) Seán Rooney, who was dead earlier this month in South Lebanon, is carried by his colleagues during a repatriation ceremony at Beirut airport before being taken by an Irish military plane back home. (dpa)
18 December 2022, Lebanon, Beirut: The coffin of Irish peacekeeper serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) Seán Rooney, who was dead earlier this month in South Lebanon, is carried by his colleagues during a repatriation ceremony at Beirut airport before being taken by an Irish military plane back home. (dpa)

The Lebanese army has arrested a suspect in the killing earlier this month of a peacekeeper in the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) from Ireland who died when his convoy was shot at in southern Lebanon, officials said Tuesday.

The area of the Dec. 14 shooting attack, near the southern town of Al-Aqbiya, is a center of support for the Lebanese Hezbollah party, which has denied any role in the killing.

Hezbollah spokeswoman Rana Sahili said on Friday that the Lebanese army arrested the suspect “in cooperation with Hezbollah,” and that he wasn’t a member of the armed group.

Two Lebanese security officials confirmed the arrest, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, and said the investigation into the killing is ongoing. They did not identify or provide any details about the suspect.

Initially, the military detained three people in connection with the attack but released two who were found not to have been involved in the killing, one of the security officials said.

UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti said the peacekeepers have yet to receive “official information” regarding any arrests.

On the fatal night, 24-year-old Pvt. Seán Rooney of Newtowncunningham and several other Irish peacekeepers were on their way from their base in the south to the Beirut airport. Two UN vehicles apparently took a detour through Al-Aqbiya, which is not part of the area under the peacekeepers’ mandate.

According to earlier reports, a group of angry residents confronted the peacekeepers, claiming they were outside their jurisdiction, and opened fire at their vehicles. Confrontations between residents in southern Lebanon and UNIFIL troops are not uncommon.

However, one of the two security officials said the suspect who was arrested had been part of a group that followed the UN convoy from the town of Sarafand, about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) away, suggesting a targeted attack.

The conflicting reports about the attack could not be immediately reconciled.

Rooney was buried in Ireland last week, while another Irish peacekeeper, who was wounded in the attack, 22-year-old Pvt. Shane Kearney, was medically evacuated from Lebanon to Ireland.

UNIFIL was created to oversee the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon after a 1978 invasion. The UN expanded its mission following the 2006 war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah, allowing peacekeepers to deploy along the Israeli border to help the Lebanese military extend its authority into the country’s south for the first time in decades.

Hezbollah supporters in Lebanon frequently accuse the UN mission of collusion with Israel, while Israel has accused the peacekeepers of turning a blind eye to Hezbollah’s military activities in southern Lebanon.



Jordan Army Says It Thwarts Border Infiltration across Syria, One Killed

In this May 23, 2021, file photo, the Syria national flag is displayed at a gathering at Omayyid Square in the Syrian capital Damascus, Syria. (AP)
In this May 23, 2021, file photo, the Syria national flag is displayed at a gathering at Omayyid Square in the Syrian capital Damascus, Syria. (AP)
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Jordan Army Says It Thwarts Border Infiltration across Syria, One Killed

In this May 23, 2021, file photo, the Syria national flag is displayed at a gathering at Omayyid Square in the Syrian capital Damascus, Syria. (AP)
In this May 23, 2021, file photo, the Syria national flag is displayed at a gathering at Omayyid Square in the Syrian capital Damascus, Syria. (AP)

The Jordanian army said on Sunday it had killed one person and arrested six others who tried to cross the border from Syria.

Officials say there has been a spike in such attempts in recent weeks by drug and arms smugglers linked to pro-Iranian militias who hold sway in southern Syria.

The army says they have also used drones in their operations.

Damascus denies any complicity and says it tries to curb rampant drug and arms smuggling across the border with Jordan.