A fundraiser in honor of Irish peacekeeper Private Seán Rooney, who was killed in Lebanon last month, has raised more than €10,000 for a charity that supports children through bereavement.
"The Seán Rooney 100km run within January" was organized by his comrades in UNIFIL's 121st Infantry Battalion in Lebanon and aims to raise funds for the non-profit Rainbows Ireland Child & Youth Grief & Loss Support CLG.
The fundraiser, which has raised €10,243 since it was launched on GoFundMe six days ago, will support a free voluntary service for children experiencing loss after a death or parental separation. All donations will be made in honor of Rooney.
Rooney, 24, was killed on December 14 when the armored car he was traveling in came under attack outside the village of Al-Aqbiya in southern Lebanon.
The attack took place just outside UNIFIL's area of operations in an area controlled by Lebanese group Hezbollah, which has denied any responsibility for the attack.
The attack left three other Irish peacekeepers injured, including 23-year-old Trooper Shane Kearney, who suffered blunt force trauma to the head and has since been transported back to Ireland.
Seven people have been charged in connection with the attack, including Mohammed Ayyad, who was handed over to Lebanese authorities by Hezbollah last month.
Ayyad has been charged "with killing the Irish soldier and attempting to kill his three comrades by shooting them with a machine gun," a judicial official told the AFP on the condition of anonymity.
The six other fugitives are not in custody and have been charged with "uttering threats with an illegal weapon, destroying the UNIFIL vehicle and intimidating its passengers".
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