Cork's Trooper Shane Kearney 'no longer critical' following Lebanon attack
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UN peacekeeper Trooper Shane Kearney is responding well to treatment following an attack on Irish soldiers in Lebanon last month.
Tpr Kearney from Killeagh in East Cork, was seriously injured after he and his comrades — members of 121st Infantry Battalion United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) — were attacked last month.
His colleague, Private Seán Rooney, was killed in the attack.
Tpr Kearney was flown back to Ireland on December 21 and taken to Beaumont Hospital to continue receiving medical treatment.
In an update today, the Defence Forces said the 22-year-old is no longer critical and his condition is now described as stable.
"The medical staff are satisfied with his continues and steady progress," a statement said.
"The Defence Forces and Tpr Shane Kearney's family wish to thank everyone for all the support that they continue to receive."
Last week, Lebanon's military tribunal charged seven people over the attack.
The Lebanese military in late December detained one suspect, a supporter of Hezbollah, the powerful armed group that controls the southern part of Lebanon where the attack took place.
He has been charged with murder, according to one judicial source. The other six suspects face charges ranging from attempted murder to damaging a vehicle. None are in custody.
After issuing its charges, the military tribunal transferred the case to a civilian court, Lebanon's army said in a statement.
Hezbollah has officially denied involvement in the incident, calling the killing an "unintentional incident" that took place solely between the town's residents and Unifil.