‘Significant legal challenges’ in Mahmoud Bazzi case, says Coveney

Minister for Defence Simon Coveney has said he hopes justice will be served in the case of Mahmoud Bazzi, the chief suspect in the 1980 murder of two Irish peacekeepers.

Mr Bazzi is being held in Beirut following his deportation from the US last week for immigration offences, but it has emerged that he could go free under an amnesty covering crimes committed during the 1975-90 Lebanese civil war.

The 71-year-old is alleged to have kidnapped, tortured and killed privates Derek Smallhorne (31), from Dublin, and Thomas Barrett (30), from Cork and shot Irish peacekeeper John O'Mahony, in 1980. The privates were serving with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil ).

Mr Coveney said he had huge sympathy for the families of Mr Smallhorne and Mr Barrett as they had been campaigning for justice for more than 30 years. “There is a court case potentially pending here and I don’t want to prejudice that,” he said. “But we were very anxious to see Mr Bazzi deported from the United States and taken to Beirut, to Lebanon, which is the only country in the world where he can stand trial.

“I think everybody recognises that there are significant legal challenges here with securing a conviction but I think there’s also a desire to try and take a case.”

Mr Coveney said he hoped the legal system in Lebanon "will be able to do everything it can to secure justice for the families and for the Defence Forces broadly because of two murders and one attempted murder".

He said it was his job as the Minister for Defence to try and seek justice for members of the Defence Forces.

“We have done everything we can to do that in terms of providing evidence and assistance and advice and support to try to assist in any case that might be taken”.

Mr Bazzi allegedly committed the murders while a member of the Israeli-sponsored South Lebanon Army (SLA) militia, formed to operate against Palestinian and Lebanese Shia forces during Israel's 1978-2000 occupation of Lebanese territory north of the border with Israel.

He emigrated to the US in 1994 and settled in Dearborn, Michigan where he worked as an ice cream man for many years.