An Irish member of the UN peacekeeping was killed in south Lebanon near the Israeli border, while three others were wounded after their convoy came under fire, UN and Irish sources revealed on Thursday.
Irish President Michael Higgins expressed his “deepest sorrow” over the death.
“As a people, we take great pride in our unbroken record of peacekeeping with the United Nations,” Higgins said.
“However, we must never forget the dangers that come with this work or how the members of our Defence Forces serving on peacekeeping missions abroad risk their lives every day in order to build and maintain peace in conflict zones across the world.”
In a statement, the Irish military pointed out that a convoy of two armored utility vehicles carrying eight personnel traveling to Beirut came under small arms fire.
"Four personnel were taken to Raee Hospital, near Sidon as a result of the (2115 GMT) incident," the military noted. "One soldier was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital and another has undergone surgery and is in a serious condition. The other two soldiers are being treated for minor injuries."
On his part, Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati voiced his "deep regret following this painful incident" and underlined the "need to carry out the necessary inquiries to determine its circumstances and prevent its repetition."
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