Taoiseach hopes to visit Irish troops abroad as part of 2023 schedule

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said he hopes to visit Irish troops abroad in the coming year following the death of Pte Seán Rooney who was killed in an ambush while serving on a United Nations Lebanon mission.

The attack on December 14th in the southern town of Al-Aqbieh left Pte Rooney dead and Trooper Shane Kearney seriously injured when their Unifil vehicle came under heavy gunfire and crashed.

A criminal investigation has since been opened by the Lebanese authorities. Asked if he had plans to travel abroad to visit Irish troops, Mr Varadkar replied that he hoped to do so.

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Mr Varadkar was reappointed as Taoiseach this month as part of a deal brokered with Fianna Fáil and the Green Party.

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Lebanese court charges five Hizbullah members with killing Private Seán Rooney

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Tánaiste pays tribute to Pte Seán Rooney at memorial for fallen Irish soldiers in South Lebanon

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“On the issue in relation to travel abroad, I haven’t got any plans at the moment to travel to Mali, Lebanon or Syria, but I might be able to do that perhaps sometime next year. I did have a chance to meet with Pte Rooney’s family and also Pte Kearney’s family.”

Asked if he was prioritising a trip to troops abroad, Mr Varadkar replied: “I hope that can be done.”

The Taoiseach also said he hopes to visit India. His father Ashok is from Mumbai but the family originated in Varad, a village in Gujarat state north of Mumbai, from which the family derives the name. Asked if he has plans to visit India, Mr Varadkar replied that “again, it’s something I’d love to do. I have been there privately, in 2019, as part of a family visit. I haven’t visited officially since 2011. But these things are actually quite complicated to organise. You have to know that the prime minister is available and things like that. It’s on the list of possibles, but by no means definite in 2023.”