A Lebanese judge on Thursday accused five members of the Hezbollah terrorist organization, only one of whom is in custody, of killing an Irish peacekeeper last December, AFP reported. Private Sean Rooney, 23, was killed and three others were injured on December 14 when their UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) vehicle was attacked near the village of Al-Aqbiya, a Hezbollah stronghold in the south of Lebanon. Fadi Sawan, the investigating judge in the military tribunal for the case, issued a 30-page indictment accusing five Hezbollah members of "forming a group of malefactors to commit a crime", a Lebanese judicial official told AFP . Mohammad Ayyad, who has been in custody since Hezbollah handed him over to the army in December, is accused along with four other members of the group of "intentional homicide", the official said. Under Lebanese law, such crimes are punishable by death, he said, adding that Sawan had referred them to military court and shared the indictment with UNIFIL. UNIFIL acts as a buffer between Lebanon and Israel and operates near the border. It works to implement Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the Second Lebanon War in 2006. According to the resolution, Hezbollah must not be allowed to operate in southern Lebanon and the entire area of southern Lebanon must be free of any armed personnel and weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon. Thursday’s indictment said footage from surveillance cameras near the scene of the incident "clearly shows the patrol being attacked by armed men from all sides", the official said. "Some of them could be heard saying 'we are Hezbollah' and using walkie-talkies to communicate," he added, citing the document. Hezbollah has repeatedly denied involvement in the incident. Related articles: UNIFIL must leave Lebanon if it cannot restructure Lebanon detains more than 25 after UN convoy attack Hezbollah supporters target UN convoy 'Ensure UNIFIL enforces ceasefire this time' UNIFIL peacekeepers have come under attack several times over the years. In June, the UN's mission in Lebanon called for the country's military to guarantee the security of its peacekeepers, alleging personnel were "threatened" by armed men. In January of 2022, unknown perpetrators attacked a group of UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, vandalizing their vehicles and stealing official items from them. In late 2020, a mob seized equipment from a UNIFIL convoy in south Lebanon after blocking its route.
