An Cosantóir

www.military.ie the defence forces magazine | 59 Capt Roger McCorley Congo / ONUC with Distinction Capt John Norton Congo / ONUC with Distinction Capt Michael Purfield Congo / ONUC with Distinction Capt Thomas Quinlan Congo / ONUC with Distinction Lt Peter Feeley Congo / ONUC with Distinction Lt Anthony Murphy Congo / ONUC with Distinction Lt Patrick Riordan Congo / ONUC with Distinction Sgt Maj Patrick Norris Congo / ONUC with Distinction Coy Sgt Daniel Carroll Congo / ONUC with Distinction Coy Sgt Walter Hegarty Congo / ONUC with Distinction Coy Sgt William McLoughlin Congo / ONUC with Distinction CQMS James Cotter Congo / ONUC with Distinction Sgt Alfred Johnston Congo / ONUC with Distinction Sgt John Quirke Congo / ONUC with Distinction Sgt Michael Rowland Congo / ONUC with Distinction Sgt George Shaughnessy Congo / ONUC with Distinction Cpl William Allen Congo / ONUC with Distinction Cpl Gerard Francis Congo / ONUC with Distinction Cpl John Kavanagh Congo / ONUC with Distinction Cpl Patrick Gregan Congo / ONUC with Distinction Cpl Michael O'Sullivan Congo / ONUC with Distinction Pte Anthony Connolly Congo / ONUC with Distinction Comdt Joseph Fallon Lebanon / UNIFIL with Distinction Lt Col Gerald O'Sullivan Cyprus / UNFICYP with Distinction Comdt James Flynn Cyprus / UNFICYP with Distinction Sgt Maurice Lordon Lebanon / UNIFIL with Distinction Pte Michael Dillon Lebanon / UNIFIL with Distinction Pte Colin Douglas Lebanon / UNIFIL with Distinction Pte Michael Burke Lebanon / UNIFIL with Distinction Sgt John Power Lebanon / UNIFIL with Distinction Pte Edward Doyle Lebanon / UNIFIL with Distinction Sgt Michael Fleming Lebanon / UNIFIL with Distinction Sgt John O'Reilly Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt Thomas Maguire Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt Patrick McCormack Congo / ONUC with Merit Coy Sgt Felix Grant Congo / ONUC with Merit Pte Patrick Wall Congo / ONUC with Merit Pte John Murray Congo / ONUC with Merit Pte James Murray Congo / ONUC with Merit Pte Peter Madigan Congo / ONUC with Merit A/Cpl Aiden Doyle Congo / ONUC with Merit Cpl John Keenan Congo / ONUC with Merit Pte Christopher Doolan Congo / ONUC with Merit Pte John Clarke Congo / ONUC with Merit Cpl Anthony Woodcock Congo / ONUC with Merit Cpl Francis O'Neill Congo / ONUC with Merit Cpl Edward Nolan Congo / ONUC with Merit Cpl John Kealy Congo / ONUC with Merit Cpl James Feery Congo / ONUC with Merit Cpl James Fallon Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt William Whelan Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt John Ryan Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt William O'Sullivan Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt James McCafferty Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt Patrick Mulcahy Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt Daniel Mannix Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt Patrick Hayes Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt William Hartley Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt John Daly Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt Richard Connolly Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt Joseph Cashman Congo / ONUC with Merit Sgt Daniel Ahern Congo / ONUC with Merit Coy Sgt Christopher Walsh Congo / ONUC with Merit Fr Edward Dunne CF Lebanon / UNIFIL with Merit Sgt Michael Smith Lebanon / UNIFIL with Merit Cpl Noel Mullins Lebanon / UNIFIL with Merit Sgt Richard O'Shea Lebanon / UNIFIL with Merit Cpl Timothy McCarthy Lebanon / UNIFIL with Merit Pte Kenneth Benson Lebanon / UNIFIL with Merit Pte Patrick Kennedy Lebanon / UNIFIL with Merit Pte Michael Geoghegan Lebanon / UNIFIL with Merit Cpl Timothy McCarthy Lebanon / UNIFIL with Merit Comdt Ian Byrne Liberia / UNMIL with Merit Coy Sgt David Murphy Liberia / UNMIL with Merit In 1997, Pte Paul Coventry, 29 Inf Bn was awarded the An Bonn Míleata Calmachta: Military Medal for Gallantry with Merit while serving with 'A' Coy 71st Inf Bn in Lebanon. Following an attack on a DFF compound, approximately 30-armed elements attempted to get through an IRISHBATT checkpoint 6-10. Having failed, they opened fire with small arms and RPGs. Most of the fire was directed at the check- point's machine gun post manned by Pte Niall Coleman, and as a result he received a gunshot wound to the stom- ach. A number of attempts were made to get to Pte Cole- man by his comrades but they were forced back by the sever- ity of fire (approx. 2,000 rounds were fired at Irish positions, 74 hitting the MG position and 21 inside). In a final attempt, Pte Coven- try, ignoring the intense fire and without regard for his own safety, broke cover and ran 15 yards under heavy fire and scaled an 8ft high wall on the perimeter of the MG post. He rendered first aid to Pte Cole- man, radioed a medevac and comforted his comrade while firing continued unabated. Un- fortunately Cpl Peter Ward died when his SISU came under fire while attempting to reinforce the position. His citation reads: "For display- ing exceptional bravery and compassion of a higher order, while serving with the United Nations Interim Force In Leba- non, when during a serious con- frontation with armed elements at Checkpoint 6-10 Al Jurn, on the 29th of September 1992, he, with little regard for his own safety, voluntarily and without hesitation, left his position of relative safety and moved, exposing himself to hostile fire, to a position that was under ef- fective fire, to render assistance to a wounded comrade."

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