I propose to take Questions Nos. 10 and 97 together.
The killings of Private Thomas Barrett and Private Derek Smallhorne and the wounding of Private John O'Mahony in 1980 while they served with the United Nations Interim Force in the Lebanon were abhorrent crimes. The nation grieved for their loss and our sympathy for their loved ones has not diminished with the passage of time. The legal issues in this case have been reviewed on a number of occasions with a view to determining whether persons alleged to have committed these crimes could be brought to justice.
The Government has engaged in close consultation with the United States authorities on the question of bringing to justice the alleged perpetrator, who is understood to be resident in the US, and is a naturalised US citizen. The Deputy will understand that I am not in a position to go into detail. I can, however, assure him that the US authorities have been very helpful in the course of these consultations.
The question of seeking the extradition to the State for trial here of the alleged perpetrators of these crimes does not arise because the Irish courts do not have jurisdiction to try persons for acts such as these committed by non-nationals outside the State. An extradition request would therefore have to be made by the country where the crime was committed, namely, Lebanon, with a view to a criminal prosecution there.
As the Deputy will be aware, the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel, which was inspired by the need to improve the level of protection of personnel such as Private Barrett and Private Smallhorne serving on UN missions, and to ensure the punishment of individuals who do not respect the mandate of UN peacekeepers, entered into force on 15 January 1999. The convention, however, does not apply retrospectively.
The Government will continue to explore such avenues as may be open to it to seek justice in this tragic case.
