Referral of 5 accused to the public prosecution in the case of UN peacekeeper's killing

According to a well-informed source, via the "Akhbar al-Yawm" agency, the decision issued by Judge Fadi Sawan in the case of the murder of an Irish soldier from the UNIFIL forces against 5 individuals is an indictment decision before referring them to the public prosecution.

The source explained that the indictment was issued against four individuals in absentia and a single detainee who had previously handed himself over to the security services.

The source denied that the indictment named Hezbollah as the accuser or indicated the affiliation of the accused.

It was stated in the "AFP" agency, the following:

The military judiciary accused on Thursday five members of Hezbollah, one of whom is in custody, of intentional murder in the attack on a patrol of the Irish battalion serving in the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in southern Lebanon, which resulted in the killing of an Irish soldier, a judicial source told Agence France-Presse.

Irish Private Sean Rooney, 23, was killed and three other peacekeepers were wounded on December 14 when a group of armed men shot at the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) vehicle near the village of al-Aqbiya in southern Lebanon, and less than two weeks later, "Hezbollah" handed over to the army the main shooter.

The indictment issued by the First Military Investigative Judge, Fadi Sawwan, accused individuals affiliated with Hezbollah of "forming a criminal group and executing a single criminal project."

He confirmed that the actions of the detained individual, Mohammad Ayyad, and four fugitives from justice fall under the fifth paragraph of Article 549 of the Lebanese Penal Code, which states that "if a crime is committed against a public official while performing their duties, or in connection with their duties, or because of their duties, the perpetrator shall be punished by death."

The decision, which spans thirty pages and was seen by the Agence France-Presse, concludes that the individuals mentioned are guilty of "intentional murder." 

They have all been referred to the military court for trial. Judge Sawwan also handed a copy of the indictment to the UNIFIL force.

Audio and video recordings of surveillance cameras seized in the vicinity of the site of the attack, according to the indictment, showed "clearly surrounding the assaulted patrol from all sides, and attacked by armed men, some of whom were heard saying (We are from Hezbollah), and calling some of them through wireless devices".

At the beginning of the year, the Lebanese judiciary charged seven people with the crimes of "shooting threats from an unlicensed War weapon, smashing military vehicle and intimidating its elements".

After the incident, Hezbollah asked not to be involved in the "unintentional" incident. Then, it handed over the primary shooter as part of its cooperation with the investigation conducted by the Army Intelligence Directorate.