RELATIVES of three UN peacekeepers murdered in 1989 have hailed an independent inquiry into the incident as enough to expose a 22-year army cover-up.

Relatives of Corporal Fintan Heneghan, Private Mannix Armstrong, and Private Thomas Walsh have finally, after more than 22 years, received apologies on behalf of the Army from Lieutenant General Seán McCann, the Chief of Defence Forces, and on behalf of the state from Alan Shatter, the Minister for Justice.

There was a systemic failure to respond to the threats facing peacekeeping personnel, a new report into the deaths of three Irish soldiers in Lebanon has stated.